ONE Championship: What’s Next For Sage Northcutt After ONE Fight Night 10 Win?

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After four years on the sidelines, "Super" Sage Northcutt returned to MMA action in triumphant fashion last Saturday, 6 May, at ONE Fight Night 10: Johnson vs. Moraes III, and the American undoubtedly made up for lost time in the Circle.

Northcutt took to the ONE proving ground for the first time since his promotional debut back in May 2019 when he fell to Cosmo Alexandre in disastrous fashion. With that outcome looming over him, he was committed to making a point against surging Ahmed Mujtaba in Denver, Colorado.

In just 39 seconds, Northcutt thoroughly asserted his return to the lightweight division when he secured a heel hook victory over Mujtaba to send the Colorado crowd into a craze.

Having answered all the questions and silenced every critic after showcasing his evolving skill set, the 26-year-old left the Circle unscathed and ready to reappear again in the near future.

The American's return to his true weight bracket at lightweight also opens the door to some very intriguing matchups in the division, and the impressive victory against Mujtaba could see him nearing lightweight's top-five fold.

If that is the case, a matchup with Halil Amir could certainly entice the Team Alpha Male into attempting to steal the Turkish native's #3-ranked position in the division. Amir was last seen at ONE Fight Night 9: Nong-O vs. Haggerty when he stretched Maurice Abevi over three rounds.

The win followed Amir's impressive debut back at ONE on Prime Video 2, where he dispatched dangerous Timofey Nastyukhin with a second-round knockout and moved to 2-0 inside the Circle.

The pair have now gathered a strong sense of momentum from their recent outings, and a collision course en route to lightweight gold could make for a fascinating fight under the bright lights of ONE.

Another name that Northcutt has been linked to is #5-ranked lightweight Shinya "Tobikan Judan" Aoki. The Japanese icon could also prove to be the Californian's clearest path into the lightweight rankings.

Aoki came up short last time around to Saygid Izagakhmaev at ONE 163 in a first-round TKO loss. Aoki could be the perfect opponent for Northcutt to face next, and with his newly obtained submission skill set, he'd be full of confidence coming up against the Japanese legend.

That all depends, though, on how Northcutt has planned out the remainder of his 2023 and the names he has his in mind to challenge next. But the American is clearly never one to turn down a battle against any man who stands in his way.