Bryan Barberena was scheduled to fight Jonavin Webb at UFC Pittsburgh on February 21st, but he accepted a late-notice fight with 19-year-old prospect Sage Northcutt on the UFC on FOX 18 main card. The fight was changed from lightweight to welterweight due to time constraints, and Barberena came into tonight as the biggest underdog on the card.
After a rough 1st round which saw Northcutt dominate much of the action, Barberena went to work from top position after Northcutt fell throwing a kick. Northcutt's weaknesses on the ground were exploited by "Bam Bam", who smothered Northcutt and punished him with hard ground strikes. He finished off the fight, rather surprisingly, with an arm-triangle choke from half-guard. Northcutt tapped just a few seconds after Barberena set it up, and you can see the finish for yourself.
Official result: Bryan Barberena def. Sage Northcutt via submission (arm-triangle choke) at 3:06 of round 2
Barberena improves to 11-3 and 2-1 in the UFC, while Northcutt loses for the first time in his professional career, dropping to 7-1.