At UFC on Fox 18, the pressure was on 19-year-old Sage Northcutt to continue his perfect run in the UFC. Bryan Barberena was looking to knock the rising star down a peg by getting the upset win.
The fight started with Northcutt rushing in with a flurry of punches to set up a takedown. Barberena stuffed the takedown, pushing Northcutt to the center of the cage. Northcutt landed a straight right hand that knocked Barberena down. Northcutt swarmed on Barberena but couldn’t get the takedown. After an exchange against the cage, Northcutt grabbed Barberena against the cage and slammed him to the mat.
Barberena was able to make his way back up, but was quickly caught with a big punch in another striking exchange. Northcutt shot for several takedown but was taken down himself from a trip. Barberena landed a quick hook, backing Northcutt up. As the round ended, both fighters traded wild punches.
In the second round, Northcutt went for a wild kick and was taken down. Barberena landed good shots from the guard of Northcutt. Barberena was able to move to half-guard while continuing to land short punches and elbows. Barberena applied an arm-triangle from half-guard, a submission that is usually only finished from side-control. In a very odd move, Northcutt taps out rather quickly, stunning most people in the arena.
Bryan Barberena def. Sage Northcutt by submission (arm triangle), 3:06 of Round 2