"He is one of the best athletes in the world" - Gabriel Sousa applauds Mikey Musumeci's 'badas*' grappling style

Decorated Brazilian jiu-jitsu athlete Gabriel Sousa is honored to take on one of the best in the business, Mikey Musumeci, in his upcoming promotional debut at ONE 167.

Given the history that these two share, there are a ton of eyes for this 10-minute bantamweight submission grappling bout, which will take place on June 7th at Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.

Sousa, for one, expressed how delighted he is to scrap with the reigning flyweight submission grappling king in his first foray into the world's largest martial arts organization.

In an interview with ONE, the 27-year-old had nothing but praises for Musumeci's all-around world-class skills in 'The Gentle Art':

"Mikey is an exceptional athlete! He is really bada*s. He has an out-of-this-world guard game. He attacks the back very well, attacks footlocks, attacks heelhooks, and knee bars very well. He is one of the best athletes in the world."

Mikey Musumeci, who typically competes at 135 pounds, will go up a weight class for a chance at redemption at Sousa.

The incredibly talented Brazilian, after all, is the last person to submit him in combat, when they first crossed swords back in 2021.

'Darth Rigatoni' has gone on a rampage since, winning his next 14 matches including a pristine 6-0 run under the ONE banner.

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Gabriel Sousa says he and Mikey Musumeci improved immensely since last encounter

A lot has changed since that fateful day when Sousa caught Mikey Musumeci in a tight north-south choke and forced him to yield.

Despite having the mental edge over his foe, Sousa says he won't take 'Darth Rigatoni' lightly since he'd become much better over the years.

The Essential jiu-jitsu product, though, made it clear that his blade has also gotten sharper since that last meeting. Sousa wrote on Instagram:

"Since our first match, many people have been asking for a rematch including myself. It was my 1st good appearance competing in no-gi and a lot of things have changed since. Both of us have made huge improvements and now it's time to do it again."

ONE 167 will air live on US Primetime free of charge for those with a Prime Video subscription.