Tag: Sage Northcutt

Former UFC Fighter Sage Northcutt Makes Move to PFL After ONE Championship Departure

Former UFC Fighter Sage Northcutt Makes Move to PFL After ONE Championship DepartureAfter stints with the UFC and ONE Championship, ‘Super’ Sage Northcutt has officially signed with the Professional Fighters League….

Former UFC Fighter Sage Northcutt Makes Move to PFL After ONE Championship Departure

After stints with the UFC and ONE Championship, ‘Super’ Sage Northcutt has officially signed with the Professional Fighters League.

According to a report from Mike Bohn of MMA Junkie, Northcutt has inked a deal with the promotion and is expected to make his debut in 2025.

Northcutt first burst onto the mixed martial arts scene in 2015 under the UFC banner. During his three-year run with the promotion, the Texas native scored himself a solid 6-2 record with noteworthy wins against Michel Quiñones, Thibault Gouti, and Zak Ottow.

sage northcutt ufc debut october 2015

After fighting out his contract in 2018, Northcutt traded in the Octagon for the Circle, signing with ONE Championship in search of greener pastures and a greater opportunity to compete.

Unfortunately, Northcutt’s plan backfired when he suffered a horrifying 29-second knockout in his promotional debut against Cosmo Alexandre. ‘Super’ was left with eight facial fractures that required nine hours of surgery to repair.

Sage Northcutt cuts ties with ONE after pulling out of long-awaited fight with shinya Aoki

The injury put him on the shelf for four years before making his return to ONE in May 2023. Northcutt secured a quick-fire submission victory over Ahmed Mujtaba at ONE Fight Night 10 and was later scheduled for a scrap against Japanese MMA legend Shinya Aoki in January.

super sage northcutt is back with a 39 second submission e29aa1efb88f

Unfortunately, that fight never came to fruition after Northcutt pulled out of the bout hours before it was scheduled to go down after his coaches failed to obtain visas to corner him at the event in Tokyo.

“I sent ONE Championship the necessary paperwork they required to get my coaches visas 48 days ahead of the event,” Northcutt wrote on social media. I was told by them over the phone and by text my main jiu-jitsu coach Fabio Prado did not need a visa since I paid for his airfare flights and trip so he was not classified as a working employee that needed a visa and that my other coach could get in as a tourist so he didn’t need one either.

“My coaches were there for almost a week, and I was not informed that two of them could not coach until hours before my match. I received a text from an unknown number that texted me for the first time that day that was a ticket salesman asking me about getting my two coaches complimentary tickets to watch my fight in the audience. I personally believe that ONE Championship was not going to inform me that my coaches were not allowed to corner me until I arrived at the arena to fight if I did not hear from a ticket salesman hours earlier.”

Northcutt exited the promotion shortly after, wrapping up a run that saw him compete just twice over five years.

Sage Northcutt 2

Former UFC Fighter Sage Northcutt Signs With PFL After Failed ONE Championship Stint

The once-promising Sage Northcutt has his next career move set. Northcutt (12-3) was once widely seen as a future UFC star following a debut victory inside the Octagon aged 19 at UFC Fight Night 80. However, “Super Sage” didn’t have his contract renewed following its expiration in 2018. The 28-year-old subsequently joined ONE Championship’s ranks, where he […]

The once-promising Sage Northcutt has his next career move set.

Northcutt (12-3) was once widely seen as a future UFC star following a debut victory inside the Octagon aged 19 at UFC Fight Night 80. However, “Super Sage” didn’t have his contract renewed following its expiration in 2018.

The 28-year-old subsequently joined ONE Championship’s ranks, where he had a rough start to life in the Circle by falling via knockout to Brazil’s Cosmo Alexandre at ONE: Enter the Dragon. As well as losing his opening outing in the promotion, Northcutt was also sidelined after suffering eight facial fractures that required extensive surgery to repair.

While that left the American out of action for four years, he returned with a bang in 2023. But after recording his first win on the ONE stage by submitting Ahmed Mujtaba in quick time, it’s safe to say that the momentum did not continue.

Northcutt had a public falling out with the promotion this past January when he pulled out of a clash with Shinya Aoki on fight night after his cornermen were reportedly denied visas.

That relationship was evidently not able to be repaired, with the Californian having his departure from ONE confirmed in October. And over a month on, his next destination has been confirmed as the Professional Fighters League (PFL).

The news was first reported by MMA Junkie’s Mike Bohn.

As of this writing, it’s unclear whether Northcutt will enter the PFL’s regular season and playoff format for 2025 or compete at the pay-per-view Super Fights events. It has been confirmed, however, that the 28-year-old will be fighting at welterweight.

Sage Northcutt slams ONE Championship after promotion places blame on him for ONE 165 withdrawal

Sage Northcutt slams ONE ChampionshipSage Northcutt is looking to set the record straight regarding his short-notice withdrawal from a ONE Championship event last…

Sage Northcutt slams ONE Championship

Sage Northcutt is looking to set the record straight regarding his short-notice withdrawal from a ONE Championship event last month.

Northcutt was scheduled to fight Japanese MMA icon Shinya Aoki at ONE 165 in Tokyo on January 28. An hour before their bout was scheduled to begin, the promotion revealed that Northcutt had bowed out, noting an “unforeseen circumstance with his cornermen.” As a result, former ONE bantamweight world champion John Lineker was literally pulled from the stands and thrown into the ring to ensure Aoki still had the opportunity to compete in front of his home country.

Speaking on the situation during a post-fight press event, ONE CEO Chatri Sityodtong appeared to place much of the blame on Northcutt, noting that current ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion Tye Ruotolo offered to step in and corner Northcutt in the absence of his coaches — one being former UFC title challenger Urijah Faber. Northcutt reportedly refused the last-second change and opted out of the bout.

Taking exception to his employer putting the blame squarely on his shoulders, Sage Northcutt snapped back at ONE Championship in a lengthy post on social media to set the record straight.

“One Championship is implying that I pulled out of the Shinya fight for unforeseen circumstances,” Northcutt wrote on Instagram. “That is completely inaccurate.. I sent One Championship the necessary paperwork they required to get my coaches visas 48 days ahead of the event. I was told by them over the phone and by text my main jujitsu coach Fabio Prado did not need a visa since I paid for his airfare flights and trip so he was not classified as a working employee that needed a visa and that my other coach could get in as a tourist so he didn’t need one either,” Sage Northcutt wrote.

“My coaches were there for almost a week, and I was not informed that two of them could not coach until hours before my match. I received a text from an unknown number that texted me for the first time that day that was a ticket salesman asking me about getting my two coaches complimentary tickets to watch my fight in the audience.

“I personally believe that One Championship was not going to inform me that my coaches were not allowed to corner me until I arrived at the arena to fight if I did not hear from a ticket salesman hours earlier. We were also told hours before my match that if my coaches violated the visa requirements and were caught on camera, they could be arrested and there was a 99.8% conviction rate on all arrests,” Sage Northcutt continued.

“I made it clear to One Championship that I was not flying from America to Japan if I didn’t have my three coaches. I was told before I left to Japan by an executive that I would not have to fight without my coaches. They knew before I left that I would not be able to have two of my coaches. They never told me my coaches could be thrown in prison for any visa violation.

“There has been a lot of stuff going on behind the scenes with One Championship with what caused me to withdraw from my last fight as well as other things that I will talk about at a later time on Facebook, Instagram, and with media outlets.
• drug testing
• weight cutting/ policies
• active athletes/ roster
• One’s stability… etc.”

Sage Northcutt isn’t the only fighter frustrated with ONE Championship

Sage Northcutt has only fought twice since signing with ONE, but it sounds like the honeymoon is already over between the two.

Northcutt isn’t the only contracted fighter who appears to be at odds with the Singapore-based promotion. Reigning ONE featherweight kickboxing world champion Chingiz Allazov recently expressed a desire to terminate his contract. “ONE is one of the best kickboxing promotions, it’s true… but we don’t like the contract about this promotion,” Allazov said in a statement. Unfortunately for Allazov, ONE has no intention of granting the Azerbaijani-Belarusian fighter his release according to Nick Atkin of the South China Morning Post. His deal is reportedly up in December 2026.

It will be interesting to see what else Sage Northcutt has to say about the inner workings of ONE Championship.

Sage Northcutt slams ONE Championship after promotion places blame on him for ONE 165 withdrawal

Sage Northcutt slams ONE ChampionshipSage Northcutt is looking to set the record straight regarding his short-notice withdrawal from a ONE Championship event last…

Sage Northcutt slams ONE Championship

Sage Northcutt is looking to set the record straight regarding his short-notice withdrawal from a ONE Championship event last month.

Northcutt was scheduled to fight Japanese MMA icon Shinya Aoki at ONE 165 in Tokyo on January 28. An hour before their bout was scheduled to begin, the promotion revealed that Northcutt had bowed out, noting an “unforeseen circumstance with his cornermen.” As a result, former ONE bantamweight world champion John Lineker was literally pulled from the stands and thrown into the ring to ensure Aoki still had the opportunity to compete in front of his home country.

Speaking on the situation during a post-fight press event, ONE CEO Chatri Sityodtong appeared to place much of the blame on Northcutt, noting that current ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion Tye Ruotolo offered to step in and corner Northcutt in the absence of his coaches — one being former UFC title challenger Urijah Faber. Northcutt reportedly refused the last-second change and opted out of the bout.

Taking exception to his employer putting the blame squarely on his shoulders, Sage Northcutt snapped back at ONE Championship in a lengthy post on social media to set the record straight.

“One Championship is implying that I pulled out of the Shinya fight for unforeseen circumstances,” Northcutt wrote on Instagram. “That is completely inaccurate.. I sent One Championship the necessary paperwork they required to get my coaches visas 48 days ahead of the event. I was told by them over the phone and by text my main jujitsu coach Fabio Prado did not need a visa since I paid for his airfare flights and trip so he was not classified as a working employee that needed a visa and that my other coach could get in as a tourist so he didn’t need one either,” Sage Northcutt wrote.

“My coaches were there for almost a week, and I was not informed that two of them could not coach until hours before my match. I received a text from an unknown number that texted me for the first time that day that was a ticket salesman asking me about getting my two coaches complimentary tickets to watch my fight in the audience.

“I personally believe that One Championship was not going to inform me that my coaches were not allowed to corner me until I arrived at the arena to fight if I did not hear from a ticket salesman hours earlier. We were also told hours before my match that if my coaches violated the visa requirements and were caught on camera, they could be arrested and there was a 99.8% conviction rate on all arrests,” Sage Northcutt continued.

“I made it clear to One Championship that I was not flying from America to Japan if I didn’t have my three coaches. I was told before I left to Japan by an executive that I would not have to fight without my coaches. They knew before I left that I would not be able to have two of my coaches. They never told me my coaches could be thrown in prison for any visa violation.

“There has been a lot of stuff going on behind the scenes with One Championship with what caused me to withdraw from my last fight as well as other things that I will talk about at a later time on Facebook, Instagram, and with media outlets.
• drug testing
• weight cutting/ policies
• active athletes/ roster
• One’s stability… etc.”

Sage Northcutt isn’t the only fighter frustrated with ONE Championship

Sage Northcutt has only fought twice since signing with ONE, but it sounds like the honeymoon is already over between the two.

Northcutt isn’t the only contracted fighter who appears to be at odds with the Singapore-based promotion. Reigning ONE featherweight kickboxing world champion Chingiz Allazov recently expressed a desire to terminate his contract. “ONE is one of the best kickboxing promotions, it’s true… but we don’t like the contract about this promotion,” Allazov said in a statement. Unfortunately for Allazov, ONE has no intention of granting the Azerbaijani-Belarusian fighter his release according to Nick Atkin of the South China Morning Post. His deal is reportedly up in December 2026.

It will be interesting to see what else Sage Northcutt has to say about the inner workings of ONE Championship.

Ex-UFC star Sage Northcutt books return at ONE Championship 165, takes on Shinya Aoki in retirement fight

Sage Northcutt makes return at ONE Championship 165 takes on Shinya Aoki retirement fightFormer UFC welterweight, Sage Northcutt will begin next year back inside the cage, taking on veteran Japanese grappler, Shina…

Sage Northcutt makes return at ONE Championship 165 takes on Shinya Aoki retirement fight

Former UFC welterweight, Sage Northcutt will begin next year back inside the cage, taking on veteran Japanese grappler, Shina Aoki at a ONE Championship 165 event on January 28. in Tokyo, as the latter prepares for his slated retirement fight. 

Northcutt, 27, most recently turned in a blistering first round heel hook submission win over Ahmed Mujtaba in ONE Championship’s debut on North American soil back in May in Colorado, earning a Performance of the Night bonus.

The victory came as Northcutt’s sophomore outing under the banner of the Chatri Sityodtong-led banner, having suffered a devastating 29-second KO loss to Brazilian kickboxing ace, Cosmo Alexandre back in 2019, suffering multiple facial fractures in the first round loss, sidelining him for over three years.

As for Aoki, the veteran Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu icon has been sidelined himself from mixed martial arts since November of last year, dropping his second consecutive loss in the form of a first round knockout loss to Saygid Izagakhmaev, which came off the back of a TKO loss to compatriot, Yoshihiro ‘Sexyama’. January’s outing with Northcutt is expected to come as Aoki’s final in mixed martial arts competition.

Sage Northcutt takes on Shinya Aoki at ONE Championship 165

ONE Championship confirmed the pairing of Sage Northcutt and Shinya Aoki overnight on their official social media, which followed the confirmation of a stunning bout between Rodtang Jitmuangnon, and Takeru Segawa.

“IT’S ON,” ONE Championship posted on their official X account. “Japanese legend Shinya Aoki faces off with American superstar Sage Northcutt on January 28. In Tokyo.

12-3 as a professional, over the course of his naive mixed martial arts career, former top-prospect, Northcutt has dropped losses to just the above-mentioned, Alexandre, and during his Octagon tenure, Mickey Gall, and Bryan Barberena.

Making his Octagon debut back in 2015, Northcutt turned in UFC victories over the likes of Cody Pfister, and Thibault Gouti, before scoring a second round KO win over Zak Ottow in his final appearance back in 2018, before making a move to ONE Championship.

47-11(1) as a professional, veteran grappling phenom, Aoki has competed for the likes of DEEP, Shooto, Pride, DREAM, Strikeforce, Bellator, Rizin, and ONE Championship during his storied career. And has recorded wins over the likes of George Sotiropoulos, Caol Uno, Eddie Alvarez, Mizuto Hirota, Tatsuya Kawajiri, Kazushi Sakaraba, and Eduard Folayang to name a few. 

Who wins at ONE Championship 165: Sage Northcutt or Shinya Aoki?

Sage Northcutt scores 39 second heel hook submission victory in MMA return – ONE Fight Night 10 Highlights

Sage Northcutt‘Super’ Sage Northcutt made his long-awaited return to combat sports on Friday night as ONE Championship invaded the 1stBank Center in Denver Colorado for ONE Fight Night 10 on Prime Video. Nearly four years removed from his promotional debut in 2019, Northcutt returned to the ONE Circle for a clash with Pakistani mixed martial arts […]

Sage Northcutt

‘Super’ Sage Northcutt made his long-awaited return to combat sports on Friday night as ONE Championship invaded the 1stBank Center in Denver Colorado for ONE Fight Night 10 on Prime Video. Nearly four years removed from his promotional debut in 2019, Northcutt returned to the ONE Circle for a clash with Pakistani mixed martial arts champion Ahmed ‘Wolverine’ Mujtaba.

Sage Northcutt immediately came out firing a series of kicks, but Mujtaba struck back with a solid jab that rocked Northcutt. Super’ hit the mat and Mujtaba attempted to capitalize on the opportunity, but failed to protect himself, allowing Northcutt to snatch his leg and lock in a heel hook. Less than a minute into the matchup, Mujtaba found himself in an inescapable position and was forced to tap out.

Official Result: Sage Northcutt def. Ahmed Mujtaba via submission (heel hook) at 0:39 of Round 1.

Check Out Highlights From Sage Northcutt vs. Ahmed Mujtaba at ONE Fight Night 10 Below: