After heading to Montreal, Quebec, Canada to scout the facilities and trainers at Tristar gym last week, UFC lightweight phenom Sage Northcutt has officially become the newest member of the famed fight camp.
Head trainer Firas Zahabi revealed the news during his appearance on The MMA Hour.
“Yeah, that’s right,” he said. “He’s going to be staying here for his training camp. He’ll be staying here at the Tristar dorms, and he’ll be going through the basics,” confirmed Firas (via MMA Fighting).
“Super” has been been trained by his father since he was a kid, a bond that will not be broken now that the karate expert will be headed up north to hone his skills. As Zahabi declared, his father will still be a huge part of the equation.
“I think me and his dad, we’re just going to have discussions,” he said. “At the end of the day, his dad has been training him his whole life. His dad should have the last say. But of course I want to be part of that conversation, I want to put in my two cents,” said Zahabi.
“Not necessarily publicly, but between us and all the coaches working together… what’s the next best fight? How long do we have to prepare? How do we feel we could do? We need to focus on what’s best for Sage, and give him time to expand,” he said.
And expand he will, says Zahabi, as he feels that in three years, Northcutt will be scary good.
“The kid is 19 years old. I think by the age of 21, 22, he’s going to have reached so many other levels it’s going to be scary.”
No stranger to training top talent, Zahabi also said Sage reminds him of another one of his pupils, former UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre.
“I think he reminds me a lot of Georges,” he said. “Georges is that type of guy: positive, good attitude, eager to train, always happy to go to practice. He’s always positive. I love it. That is the first step in being successful, having a good attitude.”
Northcutt will take on Cody Pfister in his sophomore effort inside the Octagon when the two tango at UFC Fight Night 80 on Dec. 10, 2015 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
That said, not everyone is jumping on the “Super” bandwagon…
You probably never heard of Pfister but he’s the guy on the ground…… And he’s co-main in a Las Vegas UFC event. pic.twitter.com/eFkhJ9MZ4o
— Kevin Lee (@MoTownPhenom) October 19, 2015
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