Potential next matchups for Sage Northcutt

Sage Northcutt’s impressive showing at ONE Fight Night 10: Johnson vs. Moraes III on Prime Video proved once more that he’s an absolute force in ONE Championship’s lightweight division.

‘Super’ Sage made his long-awaited return to the circle after battling injuries and COVID-19 in his match against Ahmed Mujtaba this past May 5 at the sold-out 1stBank Center in Colorado.

Though he’s primarily a striker, Northcutt showed his massive improvement when he scored a sub-minute heel hook submission over Mujtaba in his first fight back.

For North American fans who want to relive that incredible submission, they can stream ONE Fight Night 10 once more for free on Prime Video.

With Northcutt firmly back in the fold, it’s safe to assume that he’s hellbent to take a spot in the stacked lightweight rankings. He might need another win, or two, but Northcutt looks poised to break into the top five of ONE Championship’s 170-pound division.

That said, here are three fighters whom Sage Northcutt could potentially face next.

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#3. Halil Amir

Sage Northcutt’s incredible win against Ahmed Mujtaba immediately pushed his argument for a spot in the lightweight rankings, but a win over this man could very well cement him in the ladder.

Halil Amir is the No.4-ranked lightweight contender in the promotion and boasts a professional record of 9-0. The Turkish star is also 2-0 in ONE Championship with wins over Timofey Nastyukhin and Maurice Abevi.

The 28-year-old is just one of the lethal strikers in the lightweight division with seven of his total wins coming by way of knockout.

It’d be interesting to see how Northcutt’s karate style would fare against Amir’s brawling approach inside the circle.

Nonetheless, a match between these two will surely provide fireworks and a win for Northcutt will certainly push him to a spot in the top five rankings.

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#2. Eduard Folayang

Eduard Folayang may be getting on in age, but he remains one of the most influential fighters in ONE Championship history.

A former ONE lightweight world champion, the Filipino legend is a true pioneer of the sport and was the headliner of ONE Championship’s first-ever card ONE: Champion vs. Champion in September 2011.

Folayang has also expressed his desire to face Northcutt inside the circle in an intriguing matchup between two generational stars.

The 39-year-old has used his wushu base to wreak havoc in the early days of the promotion wherein he collected 12 wins and a couple of reigns with the ONE lightweight world title.

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#1. Shinya Aoki

Sage Northcutt has always had that wholesome vibe going on and he appears to get along with practically anyone he comes across with.

That is except Shinya Aoki.

The Japanese legend is a master at playing mind games with his opponents, and he did just that when Northcutt first posited the idea of a match against him.

Aoki and Northcutt were originally set to face each other in 2021 at ONE on TNT IV but the match was canceled after ‘Super’ Sage caught COVID-19.

Now that Northcutt’s fully healthy, and coming off a stunning submission win, it’s time to call for this fight to materialize.

Northcutt himself mentioned Aoki during his post-event press conference after ONE Fight Night 10. The 27-year-old even pointed to his evolved submission game as a potential weapon he could use against the grappling master.

They may not have a full-blown rivalry at this point, but Northcutt and Aoki will definitely have a barnburner once they meet inside the circle.