“Super” Sage Northcutt made his highly-anticipated return to action after four years away from competition and took little time to show that he’s still a force to be reckoned with. The American needed only 39 seconds to submit Pakistani MMA champion Ahmed “Wolverine” Mujtaba with a heel hook in their lightweight MMA contest at ONE Fight Night 10. 

Northcutt looked to be in his element and didn’t look like he missed a step despite his extended time away from the Circle.

The four year long lay off and training paid in full for Sage Northcutt

At the post-fight press conference, the 27-year-old shared his approach in his return to action. Northcutt said, “I’ve been working on grappling a little bit but being offensive too. I figured, I want to be a complete athlete out there and not just one aspect of the sport. So down there, I was really looking for a finish. That was the kind of mindset going in was I want to finish my opponent and do it any way possible. I saw an opening when he stood up, so I just took it.”

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Northcutt displayed his karate background early on, attacking Mujtaba with his venomous kicks. In response, “Wolverine” went for a takedown, hoping to control the match on the ground.

What’s Next for Demetrious Johnson, and the Other Two Enticing Winners at ONE Fight Night 10?

Unfortunately for the Pakistani, the work that “Super” Sage put in over the past four years paid off big time, as he didn’t allow Mujtaba to mount any kind of offense and caught him off-guard with the heel hook for the quick tap.

Sage Northcutt was eyeing a bout with the Japanese legend Shinya Aoki

Following the match, Northcutt expressed his desire to revisit a planned matchup against Japanese martial arts legend, Shinya “Tobikan Judan” Aoki. The pair was set to meet last year, but it was recently revealed that Sage Northcutt had a tough battle with COVID-19 that further delayed his return to action.

A Rewind of the Three Best Finishes Witnessed at ONE Fight Night 10

Now perfectly healthy with an improved grappling game, “Super” is ready to finally tango with the Japanese martial arts icon. Northcutt said, “I did have a fight set up with Shinya Aoki. I think that will be a super exciting one,” he said. “Looking at my finish now, I think my grappling has improved a lot. I got to show some grappling. He’s a great grappler, I think that would be a real exciting match.”