Sage Northcutt Aims To Make Up For Lost Time In ONE Championship Return

Following an extensive lay-off due to injury and illness, “Super” Sage Northcutt is set to step back under the bright lights of ONE Championship’s global stage later this year.

The American’s comeback will feature as part of ONE Fight Night 10: Johnson vs. Moraes III – the Singapore-based promotion’s first event held on U.S. soil – on Friday, 5th May, at the 1stBank Center in Broomfield, Colorado

Northcutt will take on surging Pakistani star Ahmed Mujtaba in a lightweight battle on the historic card, and he’s motivated to silence the doubters and get his career back on track. 

“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,” he said.

“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.”

The multiple-time Karate World Champion’s hiatus from action was longer and more frustrating than anticipated.

After suffering a devastating first-round knockout at the hands of Brazillian veteran Cosmo Alexandre in his promotional debut at ONE: ENTER THE DRAGON in May 2019, Northcutt required multiple surgeries that left him sidelined for some time.

A bout of Covid-19 then ended his plans to return last year.

But now, with a fight booked for 5th May and clarity in sight, the California native is ready to reintroduce himself to the MMA world.

“Oh man, I’ll tell you what, it feels so good to be back,” Northcutt beamed.

“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.”

Only time will tell if “Super” can make the most of his return. 

If he can, Northcutt plans to stay fit and ready to return to battle as soon as ONE allows it, as he feels he has lost time to make up for.

“The goal is to be successful out there and show ONE Championship that I’m able to go out there and perform and to meet the expectations of what they want. I want to go out there and put on a great performance,” he asserted.

“If I get the opportunity I would love to have a couple more fights this year. I would love to be super active. I want to knock out a couple of fights this year with ONE Championship and have great performances. That’s what I’m shooting for.”