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The four-year layoff of Sage Northcutt from 2019 to 2023 is well documented at this point, with multiple injuries and setbacks along the path back to competition.
At ONE Fight Night 10 last May, he was finally able to put that difficult period behind him by stepping inside the circle and getting a big statement win to reintroduce himself to the world of combat sports.
Submitting Ahmed Mujtaba appeared to be the spark that would finally see Northcutt’s career in ONE Championship well and truly light up, but it wasn’t to be.
Whilst he is still coming into his return at ONE 165 with tons of positivity and momentum behind him, his short-term plans were put on hold by yet another setback.
‘Super’ Sage revealed to The MMA Superfan that his plan to fight again in 2023 was ruled out by an issue that had been bothering him going into his comeback fight in Broomfield, Colorado:
“I would have liked to fight sooner than the six to eight months since my last fight, I wanted to fight very soon but I had a little nagging injury that I had going into my fight with Mujtaba and I got it checked up again after my fight.”
Watch the full interview below:
Sage Northcutt will look to keep the ball rolling at ONE 165
If there’s one way that Sage Northcutt can look to make up for only fighting once last year, it’s by securing a win at ONE 165 to keep pushing forward.
In a fight that ‘Super’ Sage has called the biggest opportunity of his career, he will face Japanese icon and MMA pioneer Shinya Aoki in front of his opponent’s home fans.
Competing in Japan is something Northcutt has wanted to be able to achieve in his career and doing it against a hometown favourite is sure to be an incredible moment for him.
Beating a legend of the game will help to get him back on track in the lightweight division following his stop-and-start return to competition.
ONE 165 airs live on Sunday, January 28, via global pay-per-view on watch.onefc.com.
