Sage Northcutt Scores Quick Submission Win In Return To Action At ONE Fight Night 10

KEY POINTS

Sage Northcutt wins against Ahmed Mujtaba at ONE Fight Night 10
Northcutt lays claim to the victory in just 39 seconds
The American phenom receives a $50,000 bonus for his performance

Sage Northcutt returned from a four-year layoff in emphatic fashion, submitting Pakistani opponent Ahmed Mujtaba on the undercard of ONE Fight Night 10 at the sold-out 1stBank Center in Denver, Colorado on Friday, May 5.

All it took for the 27-year-old American phenom to get the job done was 39 seconds, sweeping Mujtaba following a combination of a stiff jab and a takedown attempt and then wrapping his arm on his opponent's limb for a wrenching heel hook.

As soon as Northcutt fastened the submission hold, Mujtaba tapped out in pain, compelling the referee to step in and call a halt to the contest.

With the victory over Mujtaba, Northcutt improved his professional mixed martial arts record to 12-3.

In addition, he earned a $50,000 performance bonus from Chatri Sityodtong, the chairman and CEO of ONE Championship.

Meanwhile, Mujtaba dropped to a 10-3 standing and snapped his two-bout winning streak.

In other initial matches slated for ONE Fight Night 10, Aung La N Sang (30-13) of Myanmar kept his winning streak intact by submitting China's Fan Rong (19-4) with a guillotine choke in the second round.

Tye Ruotolo outlasted current ONE middleweight king Reinier de Ridder in a 10-minute submission grappling showcase to notch a unanimous decision.

Meanwhile, Filipina-American striker Jackie Buntan drew a thunderous chorus of roars from the sold-out crowd inside the 1stBank Center by knocking out Australia's Diandra Martin in the first round.

Ex-ONE flyweight champion Kairat Akhmetov (30-2) of Kazakhstan authored a repeat victory over Reece McLaren (16-9) of Australia in their rematch, banking on his wrestling-heavy offense to take home a crystal-clear unanimous decision.

In the historic occasion's curtain-raiser, former ONE lightweight titleholder Ok Rae Yoon (17-4) of South Korea denied Lowen Tynanes (11-2) from entering the division's Top Five by scoring a close unanimous decision victory over the Hawaiian bruiser.