Sage Northcutt Made Trip Home To Train Again (Exclusive)

Sage Northcutt needed to train and needed a gym.

So, the ONE Championship athlete packed up his bags in California and took off for Texas.

“I live in California and everything has been shut down all of this time with social distancing and stay at home orders, so a couple of weeks ago I drove to Texas to train some at a friend of my dad’s house,” Northcutt told FightLine in an exclusive interview. “He has a home gym and some cardio equipment. It’s been nearly impossible because where I’m at there aren’t any gyms, jiu-jitsu studios, etc. open in California.

“California also has a policy where your neighbors/people call the police if they believe you’re not complying with the stay at home orders.”

The 24-year-old is part of the famed Team Alpha Male camp based out of Sacramento, California, and he noted that eventually he will be returning there to prepare for his return to action.

“I’m really looking forward to getting back into really training,” he added.

Following a run with the UFC that included wins over Zak Ottow, Thibault Gouti and Enrique Marin in the UFC, Northcutt signed with ONE Championship. He made his debut last May, falling to Cosmo Alexandre.

While the defeat has left him itching to return to fighting, the coronavirus pandemic has also made him anxious to compete again.

“It will absolutely feel different,” he said. “It’s always different for everybody after a loss to get back in the gym because you have to fix the holes in your game and re-think your previous training.

“I think injuries are a big part of my sport, and I know they are in other sports, as well. So after severe injury, you have to come back even more motivated and more determined to improve and re-focus on every aspect of your training.

“Being away all of this time hasn’t changed my outlook on anything. It just made me more determined and more focused.”

Overall, Northcutt stands at 11-3 with five knockout wins and three more via submission.