UFC lightweight prospect Mickey Gall understands the entertainment aspect of the fight game and the importance of selling himself to the masses as much as anyone in the sport.

The Green Brook, New Jersey native burst onto the mainstream MMA scene in his first professional scrap. That fight was featured on an episode of UFC President Dana White’s reality web series ‘Lookin’ For a Fight’ in the fall of 2015. An impressive first round rear naked choke submission victory and a little talk earned Gall an immediate UFC contract.

“Squeaky wheels get the grease,” Gall said. “Closed mouths don’t get fed. This isn’t football where they are wearing shoulder pads and helmets. I am out there in my underwear. I have to sell fights. We have to be athletes but also entertainers. I believe that’s a big part of the game. I like to go out there and have fun. I like to talk a little bit of shit and have a good scrap.”

Fast forward just a few short months and Gall was shining under the brightest lights on the sport’s biggest stage as he stepped into the Octagon in the fight capital of the world, Las Vegas, at UFC Fight Night: Hendricks vs. Thompson. It took the newcomer less than a minute to submit Mike Jackson via rear naked choke. Gall was the winner of the fight but also the winner of the golden ticket sweepstakes of welcoming pro wrestling mega star C.M. Punk into the world of Mixed Martial Arts.

When the fight finally came to fruition it took the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu brown belt less than three minutes to show the world that C.M. Punk didn’t belong in the UFC. Gall won the fight going away, dominating in every aspect of the one sided scrap. The Miller Brothers MMA product felt the immense pressure to throw a shutout against the much hyped outsider.

“I was the most nervous for my fight against C.M. Punk,” Gall said. “I had to set an example. He gets nothing. He is going to do nothing good. He is getting his ass kicked from start to finish. He gets a goose egg. What if I let this dude hit me or hurt me? I will look like an asshole. I had the biggest sense of relief after I won that fight.”  

In the post-fight interview after the win over Punk, Gall wasted no time calling out his next opponent and Sage Northcutt was the name that came out of his mouth. Northcutt, who Gall referred to as corny, among other things, accepted the challenge.

The fight went down the way all of Gall’s have to this point. Gall by total domination with a near naked choke ending. The young wordsmith is so gifted with the gab that he got under the most mild mannered fighter’s skin. Although it didn’t pay off until the last minute his verbal victory showed when it mattered most.

“He was talking a little sh*t,” Gall said. “The whole time leading up to the fight I was talking shit. I was playing the heel. I was having fun. We were going to fight anyway, so do something about it, Sage. I was thinking I could talk sh*t and get him to step out of his character and engage me. I thought I didn’t get to him. He was walking around fight week smiling acting like a puppy dog. Then in the fight it pays off. He was acting outside his character. You want to be yourself in the cage. I liked it. I thought it was cute.”

Standing at 4-0 with four near naked choke finishes, the young MC did his best to call another big name into the Octagon for battle but this time it didn’t work out as planned. Gall tried to lure U.K. pioneer and former UFC welterweight title contender Dan Hardy out of retirement. Hardy is staying in the booth and out of the Octagon for the foreseeable future. That will not be the case with Gall, as he is once again looking for a fight. He is looking to get back into action soon and the up and comer isn’t limiting himself to one weight class to find that next big fight.

“I want to fight this summer,” Gall said. “I gave the name I wanted to fight. I thought that would be cool. Dan Hardy didn’t want any of it. He didn’t want to do it. OK. I’ll fight everybody. 155 pounders, 170 pounders, everybody.”