“I think that will count for a lot” - Gabriel Sousa fired up to showcase his growth in Mikey Musumeci rematch at ONE 167

Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Gabriel Sousa said he is a much-improved fighter than when he first met Mikey Musumeci and is looking forward to showcasing the improvements he has made when they run it back next week.

The Fortaleza, Brazil native will make his ONE Championship debut at ONE 167: Tawanchai vs Nattawut on June 7 in Bangkok, Thailand. He will take on 'Darth Rigatoni' in a featured bantamweight submission grappling joust happening at the Impact Arena.

It is a rematch of their first encounter nearly three years ago outside of ONE, where Gabriel Sousa came away as the winner by submission.

Mikey Musumeci has not lost since and has racked up nine straight victories, with the last six of those wins coming under the ONE Championship banner, which has also seen him win the ONE flyweight submission grappling world title.

In an interview with the promotion, Sousa moved to highlight that while Musumeci has bounced back big time since their first encounter, he, too, has evolved significantly, making him an even bigger threat in their rematch at ONE 167.

The 27-year-old ZR Team standout said:

"But I also worked a lot on guard passing. I think I'm a more complete athlete today than I was in 2021, so I think that will count for a lot."

Gabriel Sousa is among the BJJ athletes Musumeci said he wants to compete against, not only to redeem himself from the defeat he had the first time around but also because the Brazilian is among the top fighters in the game right now.

At ONE 167, the flywight submission grappling king will be moving a weight division higher to battle Sousa.

ONE 167: Tawanchai vs Nattawut will be available live and for free in U.S. primetime to North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.

Gabriel Sousa continues to sharpen skills ahead of rematch against Mikey Musumeci

Gabriel Sousa wants to make it a winning debut in ONE Championship at ONE 167 in Thailand on June 7 and is continuously sharpening his skills in the lead-up.

The BJJ ace will take on familiar foe Mikey Musumeci in a bantamweight submission grappling duel, a rematch of their first encounter in September 2021 outside of ONE, where he won by submission.

To continue to have the number of 'Darth Rigatoni' in their redo at ONE 167, Gabriel Sousa said he and his team are continuously working on his game to come up with a winning performance.

In an interview with Vitor Freitas Comunica on YouTube, Sousa provided an idea on what his preparation been like, saying:

"It's impossibble to say exactly what will happen in a fight, but you can prepare for what could happen. So, doing a lof specific training and drills with resistance, not just explosion, very technical, for these heel hook situations, both heel hooks attacking from the inside and attacking from the outside, helps a lot."

Sousa has an overall submission grappling record of 126 wins and 37 losses. He has won his last four fights entering ONE 167.