Steveson Wants Face-To-Face With White
Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images
After teasing an MMA career for a while, the two-time NCAA champion finally sounds serious about stepping into the cage and fighting.
Gable Steveson may not have managed to become a three time NCAA champion, but that doesn’t mean he’s done dreaming of big accomplishments in the sports world.
The Olympic gold medalist attempted to transition out of amateur wrestling in 2024 but was released by WWE in February and then didn’t make the roster for the Buffalo Bills in August. The 24-year-old returned to college wrestling where he had a near perfect season, only getting taken down once.
Unfortunately, that was in the NCAA finals against Wyatt Hendrickson, costing him the championship (watch the historic moment here).
In a new interview with Pat McAfee, Steveson shared his thoughts for the future and they did not include mention of a 2028 Olympic run. Instead he talked a little about NFL and a lot about MMA and UFC.
“What’s next for me is I’ve been boxing, I’ve been putting on the gloves, doing jiu jitsu classes, trying to get ready for an MMA career,” Steveson said. “Or right after I stepped off the mat Saturday night, just a couple calls from new teams in the NFL. The roads keep opening ... I’m just so happy where I am today and where the future’s gonna take me.”
The minimum salary for a first year NFL player is nearly $800,000 so it’s no surprise that Steveson would swerve into football. He wouldn’t be the first wrestler to find success as a linebacker. Unfortunately he has zero experience in the sport.
“A lot of people don’t know that was my first time ever playing football, and first time ever put on cleats,” Steveson said. “Von Miller had to help me put on my pads and strap them because I had no clue how to put them on the first day of camp.”
Steveson has a bit more experience in the world of MMA, where he has popped up in UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones’ training camps. Gable explained where he was at with his training in mixed martial arts.
Jon Jones and Gable Steveson getting in some work pic.twitter.com/rDGiiMoJTP
— Jason Williams (@jasoneg33) October 8, 2024
“Just making sure I can get my hands certified and ready,” he said. “Just making sure that I could see punches coming and make sure that I’m comfortable in a cage and comfortable with guys in front of me that are gonna be throwing these huge haymakers, and getting in and getting out the way.”
“I got a great mentor right now, I hope a lot of people know a guy named Jon Jones,” Steveson said. “Just a fantastic dude and the greatest fighter of all time. He’s pretty damn good. So I appreciate his efforts trying to lead me in the right direction and taking back and kinda giving me the direction I need.”
“I’m really young and he’s been there and he’s done that before. So I’m really appreciative of how he’s kinda walked my steps leading into this next chapter, if that’s what it is.”
Jon Jones highly praises Gable Steveson and believes he will be a UFC champion if he transitions over to MMA:
“He’s gonna be scary, he’s gonna be very scary when he decided to do MMA. He knows how to make men appear very weak, me being one of them…
It’s not a matter of if… pic.twitter.com/ULd6geEt5Y
— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) November 17, 2024
Nothing happens in the UFC without Dana White’s say-so, especially when it comes to blue chip prospects without established experience in the cage.
“I’ve not spoken to Dana personally,” Steveson said. “That’s one meeting that I would love to have face-to-face. I’ve been waiting a long time to see him. I know after the 2021 Olympics, he reached out to me and wanted me to come see him in Vegas and everything else. So that’s one meeting that I would love to have.
“If I can get in front of his face and really pitch who I am and pitch who he can see and who I will be, I think that’ll be the greatest thing.”
White has expressed interest in getting Steveson into the UFC ... but he wanted the amateur wrestling star to do it through the Contender Series. That seems insulting for an athlete of Steveson’s caliber, but the UFC isn’t exactly known for rolling out the red carpet for anyone. Will that lead Steveson back to another NFL training camp — hopefully with a little more pre-camp prep this time? Only time will tell.
