‘Feels So Good To Be Back’ – Sage Northcutt Can’t Wait For MMA Return At ONE Fight Night 10
The announcement that “Super” Sage Northcutt is set to return on Friday, May 5, was a buzz for MMA fans around the world, and nobody is more thrilled than the man himself.
The American star will face Pakistan’s Ahmed Mujtaba in a lightweight bout at ONE Fight Night 10: Johnson vs. Moraes III on Prime Video – the organization’s first show on United States soil – and he can hardly contain his excitement.
By the time Northcutt steps back inside the Circle at 1stBank Center in Colorado, it will have been four years since his last outing.
With surgeries and a global pandemic to contend with, the 26-year-old has been on the sidelines longer than he wanted, but he’s been channeling that frustration into this comeback.
He told ONEFC.com:
“Oh man, I’ll tell you what, it feels so good to be back. It’s been a while. I’ve been itching to get back.
“Not only that, getting the fight in the United States, the first U.S. card for ONE Championship, I couldn’t be more excited for that.
“You have an incredible fighter, Demetrious Johnson, headlining the card, so the card’s gonna be super exciting, especially for the first card in the U.S. I’m so excited.”
Four years is a long time to be away from competition, and it’s certainly been a difficult setback for Northcutt.
But after requiring surgery for the injuries he sustained in his ONE debut against Cosmo Alexandre and then navigating COVID-19, the situation was out of his hands.
Fortunately, the multiple-time Karate World Champion is only now reaching his prime in MMA, and he never stopped working to improve his game inside the gym. All of that effort has led to this opportunity, and he can’t wait to kick-start the next phase of his career.
Northcutt explained:
“Being 26 years old right now, I’m still extremely young, so I’m looking forward to a long and successful career. I feel like I’m just getting started, and I’m still so young that I can have a lot of fights.
“A lot of people will be thinking, ‘Hey, Sage might have some ring rust.’ It’s been three-and-a-half years. It’s a little bit of time. But I’ve been training, I’ve been staying sharp.
“I feel like I’ve improved in a lot of different areas. I’m looking forward to showing it.”
Sage Northcutt Hoping To Stay Active In 2023
When Sage Northcutt steps into the Circle against Ahmed Mujtaba at ONE Fight Night 10, he plans on making a statement.
The American has a lot of ground to make up, and he could make an immediate dent in the lightweight MMA division by finishing his Pakistani opponent – something he feels ready to accomplish in front of his compatriots in Colorado.
Northcutt said:
“Obviously [the goal is to] be successful out there and show ONE Championship that I’m able to go out there and perform, to meet the expectations of what they want, I want to go out there and put on a great performance.
“Whether it’s a submission, whether it’s ground-and-pound, or it’s a knockout, whatever it is, everybody wants a finish. That would be the ideal way to win, but you know I’m training for any aspect out there, so that way I’m prepared.”
Northcutt’s time away is something he can never get back, but he’s remained in phenomenal shape while leveling up his skill set at Team Alpha Male in California.
Now, he wants to move his career forward at full speed – starting with Mujtaba, and then with a busy 2023 in which he hopes to establish himself as a top contender.
The American added:
“If I get the opportunity I would love to have a couple more fights this year. I would love to be super active. I wanna knock out a couple of fights this year with ONE Championship and have great performances. That’s what I’m shooting for.”
