Sage Northcutt believes his setback is a set-up for “something great”

‘Super’ Sage Northcutt believes the adversity he has faced in recent years is all building towards something special.

Nearly four years removed from his ONE Championship debut in 2019, Sage Northcutt will return to the circle for his sophomore appearance. Heading to the 1stBank Center on May 5 for ONE Fight Night 10, Northcutt will meet Pakistani mixed martial artist Ahmed Mujtaba.

Days away from his long-awaited return, Northcutt spoke to ESPN MMA about his time away from competing, the setbacks he’s suffered along the way, and what he believes it’s all leading to.

“Yeah, you’re down definitely for just a little bit,” Northcutt said. “You’re just kind of bummed out. But you know, I believe God has plans for my future and there are things that may seem like it’s a setback, but it’s actually like looking back now, it’s setting something up that’s great.”

Watch the full interview below:

After a successful run in North America that saw him amass an impressive 11-2 record, Sage Northcutt stepped up his competition, singing with ONE Championship in 2019. Making his debut at ONE: Enter the Dragon, ‘Super’ suffered the biggest setback of his career, dropping a 29-second knockout loss to Brazilian striker Cosmo Alexandre.

Not only did Northcutt suffer the humiliation of being knocked out in his promotional debut, ‘Super’ also faced a horrifying injury that required more than nine hours of surgery to repair eight fractures in his face from the brutal blow delivered by Alexandre.

Standing in Northcutt’s way of a successful return at ONE Fight Night 10 will be Ahmed Mujtaba, a six-fight veteran of the circle. Riding the momentum of back-to-back first-round finishes, ‘Wolverine’ is on the cusp of ONE lightweight world title contention. A win over Sage Northcutt on May 5 would likely push him towards the top of the division and make him a star overnight.

Amazon Prime Video subscribers in North America can catch ONE Fight Night 10 live and for free in U.S. primetime.