Sage Northcutt plans on testing Shinya Aoki everywhere.
Northcutt (12-3) mets Aoki (47-11) on Sunday at ONE Championship 165 from Ariake Arena in Tokyo in what is expected to be Aoki’s retirement fight. Northcutt originally was scheduled to fight Aoki in April 2021, but lingering effects from COVID-19 forced him out.
Four years after his brutal 29-second KO loss to Cosmo Alexandre in 2019, Northcutt returned this past May when he submitted Ahmed Mujtaba in 39 seconds. With Aoki on his radar for years, the Team Alpha Male fighter is ready for the submission specialist.
“I’ve been working my grappling for the past several years a lot,” Northcutt told MMA Junkie Radio. “Great grapplers, great teammates, great coaches. So, I’ve been really, really preparing and training my grappling a whole lot to improve.”
Aoki, 40, has 30 submissions to his name. Over 60 percent of his wins have come by submission, but Northcutt showed off his own jiu-jitsu game when he tapped out Mujtaba with a heel hook.
“A lot of people know that Shinya is known for his grappling, but it’s not just a grappling match out there,” Northcutt said. “It is mixed martial arts. You have a whole different set of tools and same thing, it’s not just a striking match. So, I think really going out there and being ready for anything is very important.”
You can watch Northcutt’s full interview above.
