"He was my easiest opponent" - Mikey Musumeci satisfied to get poetic justice against rival Gabriel Sousa
Mikey Musumeci takes solace in proving his former tormentor Gabriel Sousa wrong at ONE 167 earlier this month.
The fact that he submitted the Brazilian grappler with relative ease is simply icing on the cake.
'Darth Rigatoni' shocked the combat sports scene following his uncharacteristic profanity-laced tirade in the aftermath of his duel with Sousa.
Turns out, Musumeci carried a ton of pent-up resentment for his foe after he supposedly taunted him endlessly over the years.
Sousa perhaps struck a cord when he allegedly questioned Musumeci's perfect record in ONE Championship.
Appearing on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, the ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion admitted making minced meat out of Sousa was extremely satisfying:
"He was saying that all my opponents were easy, right? But then he was my easiest opponent, out of all my opponents. So the guy that complained about the level of my opponents, my other opponents gave me tougher matches."
Even the nicest individuals have their limits, and such was the case with the usually calm and down-to-earth Musumeci.
As Sousa learned the hard way, it's never wise to poke the bear, especially if he's a five-time IBJJF blackbelt world champion with one of the nastiest submission arsenals in the world.
Relive Musumeci's astonishing calf-slicer finish of Sousa, here:
The full replay of ONE 167 is available free on demand for Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.
Mikey Musumeci proud to put 'bully' Gabriel Sousa in his place
In the same interview, Mikey Musumeci elaborated on the importance of standing up for one's self, particularly on how he dealt with Sousa's mockery.
The Evolve MMA superstar did not mince words describing how proud he is to silence his rival:
"How do you stop a bully from being a bully? You f****** put them in their place. I'm a nerdy kid, I look very nerdy, but I'm f****** more alpha and macho than all these guys. I just don't have to show it."
Watch Mikey Musumeci's full interview: