“I let out a part of me” - Mikey Musumeci shares with BJJ legend Tom DeBlass the reason for his post-match outburst at ONE 167

It might have seemed uncharacteristic to some, but Mikey Musumeci's post-fight promo at ONE 167 was the result of nearly three years of pent-up emotions.

Musumeci was visibly livid during his post-fight interview with ONE Championship commentator Mitch Chilson after he submitted old rival Gabriel Sousa in their bantamweight submission grappling matchup.

While the action on the mats had the crowd inside sold-out Impact Arena on their feet, Musumeci's promo had fans the world over talking.

Mikey Musumeci, who is one of the most mild-mannered fighters in combat sports, had an emotional outburst on the mic that stemmed from Sousa's alleged constant name-calling after they first fought in 2021.

In an Instagram video, Musumeci shared with DeBlass what led to him going haywire during his interview with Chilson.

The ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion said:

"For four years, this guy kept talking crap about me, and he did something very personal with who I consider family, and that's where I drew the line. I'm a very passionate person, right? So, what I do is I mentally detach from this scenario so when I got inside the Circle I let it out."

He added:

"What I love about jiu-jitsu, is I let out a part of me that I never let out normally. So, I let it out, and now I'm so calm. Like if I see Gabriel right now, I can hug him, I don't care."

Despite moving up a weight class, Musumeci was as fluid as ever and he locked in a tight calf slicer almost two minutes into the contest.

Sousa tried to isolate a leg during the exchange, but Musumeci's submission hold was so perfectly in place that it forced the Brazilian star to submit a minute later.

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Mikey Musumeci starts training camp for Kade Ruotolo super fight

There's no time for rest for Mikey Musumeci.

The reigning ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion will challenge Kade Ruotolo for the ONE lightweight submission grappling world title at ONE 168: Denver this September 6.

Mere days after he arrived home in Las Vegas after ONE 167, Musumeci went straight to Faito Tamashii Combat Club to roll with former UFC flyweight world champion Brandon Moreno.

"Day 2 of my camp in September!! WE WILL BE READY. DOUBT ME PLZ," wrote Musumeci on his Instagram Story.