Mikey Musumeci isn't happy just being remembered as a world champion. As it stands, 'Darth Rigatoni' is already a five-time IBJJF champion and has etched his name in the history books as ONE Championship's first-ever submission grappling world titleholder — capturing the inaugural flyweight crown at ONE on Prime Video 2 in October 2022.
But at just 27 years old, Musumeci is striving to do something even bigger before his time in the sport inevitably ends:
"Man, so one thing I was just saying in another interview, I was saying that I don't wanna be defined for just being a champion," Mikey Musumeci told ONE Championship. "What I wanna be defined for is overcoming obstacles, overcoming things that were harder for me."
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The Marlboro, New Jersey, native will take his first step toward immortality at ONE 167 on Friday night, June 7, when he moves up from his post at flyweight to take on Brazilian sensation Gabriel Sousa in a bantamweight tie in what is a rematch nearly three years in the making.
Gabriel Sousa is happy to run it back with a significantly improved Mikey Musumeci
First meeting on the mat in September 2021 under the Who's Number One banner, Gabriel Sousa scored a stunning submission victory over Mikey Musumeci via a north-south choke.
Now, the two will run it back on martial arts' biggest stage as Sousa makes his ONE Championship debut determined to go two-up on the reigning titleholder:
"Since our first match, many people have been asking for a rematch including myself," Sousa wrote on Instagram. "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 Championship fans in the United States and Canada can watch ONE 167 live and for free via Amazon Prime Video in U.S. primetime on Friday, June 7.