For Mickey Gall, showdown with Sage Northcutt all part of the plan
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — It’s not that Mickey Gall doesn’t like Sage Northcutt.
He just doesn’t believe anyone can be that happy all the time.
“He’s a young kid,” Gall said after his open workout Thursday at Golden 1 Center in advance of their main card bout on the UFC on Fox 22 card on Saturday night. “I just find him very ingenuine. I say he’s corny and a dork, but really it’s that he’s just ingenuine. It’s like he’s putting on. But he seems like a nice kid, you know?”
Back in his native New Jersey, Gall laughed about how his friends would have treated Nortcutt back in school.
“He’d find himself in a locker real quick,” Gall said.
Instead, they will find each other locked in a cage together to settle their differences.
A bout with Northcutt was all part of Gall’s plan to quickly become relevant in the UFC. From the night he made his professional debut at a regional show in Philadelphia back in November 2015, Gall knew his first few fights.
With UFC president Dana White in attendance, he called out newcomer Phil “CM Punk” Brooks. White liked the idea and signed Gall, promising him a shot against Brooks as long as he could beat unknown former MMA blogger Mike Jackson.
Gall tore through Jackson, then easily dispatched Brooks. He already knew what he was going to do next.
He called out Northcutt, the real-life version of a combination between a Ken doll and a super-hero figurine and one of the most hyped prospects the UFC has produced in some time.
Now, just over a year after making his professional debut, Gall is set for a showcase bout against Northcutt on network television.
While it was all in Gall’s plan, he’s still surprised at how closely has career has stuck to the script.
“I didn’t see it,” he conceded. “I really didn’t. I didn’t think it could go like this, but I’ll take it. I’m running with it now. I’m having fun. I asked for this fight for a reason. I know I have this boy. I can’t wait.”
This was as far as the 24-year-old Gall planned originally, but he said a new idea came to his mind during training camp. He wouldn’t reveal who he planned to call out next, but promised a grand unveiling after he beats Northcutt on Saturday.
He knows it won’t be easy, though.
“My first two opponents weren’t UFC caliber guys,” Gall said. “But what I’m looking forward to is showing that I am a UFC caliber guy and I do that by beating UFC caliber guys. We’re both relatively untested. That’s why I like this fight. Let’s go. Let’s test each other.
“I’m better on the feet. I’m better on the ground. My endurance is better. I’m tougher than him. If me and him jump in a fire, he’s hopping out way before I am. I’m way tougher and I’m going to show everyone that.”
Northcutt, who is 3-1 at the UFC despite still being just 20, came as close as he ever has to trash-talking when asked about his feelings on Gall calling him out for the fight.
“That’s a compliment,” Northcutt said. “It’s nice for everybody to be calling you out. But sometimes you need to be careful what you wish for.
By his words and actions, he doesn’t (take me seriously). I’m never one to cut anybody down, (but) he fought two guys that had never had an MMA fight before. I’m looking forward to it.”
Gall said after the win over Brooks, his profile started to grow a bit. It hasn’t changed his approach at all, though.
“I’m not doing anything different,” he said. “I get recognized at gas stations as the guy who beat up CM Punk. Other than that, I’m just training every day like I’ve been doing the last eight years trying to make myself the best fighter I can be. That’s it.”
He may have even more people knowing who he is after Saturday. Gall knows it’s a huge opportunity for someone so new to the professional ranks.
“I’m just having fun,” he said. “I’m enjoying all of it. I’m in a fortunate spot again. I’m in a co-main event on Fox. It’s cool. It’s exactly what I wanted.”
The plan is all coming together.
Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-277-8028. Follow @adamhilllvrj on Twitter.
