WATCH: Get a ringside view of Mikey Musumeci’s poetic submission win over Japanese legend Shinya Aoki
The previous outing of reigning ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion Mikey Musumeci was an openweight grappling match against former ONE lightweight MMA world champion Shinya Aoki in Oct. 2023 at ONE Fight Night 15.
During that bout inside the legendary Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, Musumeci submitted Aoki via the Japanese icon's patented "Aoki Lock" to record his sixth successive victory in ONE Championship.
The world's largest martial arts organization relived 'Darth Rigatoni's' winning moment with a ringside angle of his incredible win over 'Tobidan Judan.' They captioned the post with:
"When the student becomes the master 🙏 Can shut down Gabriel Sousa in their bantamweight subsmission grappling bout at ONE 167 on @primevideo? 🔥 @mikeymusumeci"
The 27-year-old BJJ black belt locked in his version of the "Aoki Lock" against the man himself and cranked hard when he had the opportunity, and shortly after, the Japanese legend tapped out in pain from the technique.
Musumeci only needed three minutes and five seconds to bag the win. He received a $50,000 bonus from ONE Championship Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong for that fantastic showing.
Mikey Musumeci wants to put ghost of the past to rest with a win at ONE 167
At Who's Number One in 2021, Musumeci was pitted against Gabriel Sousa, and he was expected to breeze into a victory. However, it was the opposite because the Brazilian flipped the script and scored a massive upset submission win against the American star.
Three years later, the Evolve MMA representative wants to correct that debacle by beating him in their highly anticipated rematch on June 7 as part of the stacked ONE 167 card inside the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand. Musumeci will welcome Sousa to ONE Championship through their bantamweight submission grappling bout.
ONE 167 is available live and free to all Prime Video subscribers in North America in U.S. primetime on June 7. The card will emanate from the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.