UFC Sacramento: Mickey Gall submits Sage Northcutt then calls for bout with British legend Dan ‘The Outlaw’ Hardy
Rising UFC star claims his third straight win inside the Octagon, then shocks the MMA world by calling out UFC analyst and UK MMA legend Dan Hardy for his next fight
UFC prospect Mickey Gall won the battle of young prospects at UFC on FOX 22 in Sacramento, then turned his attention to one of the sport's legends.
Gall defeated fellow rising star Sage Northcutt via second-round submission after a fun round and a half of action in California that had the fans on their feet.
Gall scored an early takedown and worked for a submission against the cage, but Northcutt stayed calm and eventually escaped, taunting Gall as he landed some solid kicks to the grounded New Jersey man's legs as he gesticulated at him to get up.
The unexpected trash talk appeared to continue into the second round, but as Northcutt began to relax and find his rhythm with his strikes, the fight took a major turn.
A huge overhand right from Gall clipped Northcutt just above his left ear, sending him crashing to the mat.
And the shrewd grappler wisely opted not to pursue the TKO stoppage, instead taking advantage of Northcutt's disorientated state to take his back and lock up a rear-naked choke, forcing the tap at the 1:40 mark of the second round.
After the fight Gall took the opportunity to call out his next potential opponent, surprising many by saying he wants to drop down to 155lbs to take on British MMA legend and UFC analyst Dan 'The Outlaw' Hardy.
Former world welterweight title challenger Hardy has spoken of his desire to make a comeback as a 155-pounder, and has been working towards obtaining medical clearance in order to do so.
Hardy's immediate response to Gall's call-out was somewhat sarcastic (see above), but could a comeback fight with Gall, perhaps at UFC Fight Night in London next March, be feasible?
Watch this space.
