"How stupid is that" - Henry Cejudo discusses WWE's alleged refusal to let Gable Steveson pursue another Olympic trial
Former UFC multi-division champion Henry Cejudo has shared his thoughts on WWE star Gable Steveson allegedly not getting an opportunity to perform at the Olympic trials.
In the latest episode of the 'Pound 4 Pound' podcast, Cejudo had a conversation about Steveson with co-host Kamaru Usman and guest Chael Sonnen. 'The Messenger' accused the WWE of not allowing Steveson to appear for the Olympic trials.
Cejudo also criticized the 23-year-old's decision to go to WWE after winning an Olympic gold medal. 'Triple C' stated that Steveson was going to regret the decision later on as he was wasting his youth by not continuing his career in freestyle wrestling.
"A guy like Gable Steveson, they're going to regret them giving like the best of their youth away to chasing entertainment and money," Cejudo said. "Like Gable Steveson, at the age of 21, I have never seen a heavyweight move like that. I'm like, 'This dude can go out and win another gold medal, set himself apart from the rest.' But now... the WWE is not allowing him to go to the Olympic trials because he has Tuesday night Smackdown. Like how stupid is that for these guys to make that decision and give away their youth."
Check out Henry Cejudo's comments from the 28:00 mark below:
Cejudo himself used to be an Olympic athlete and won the 2008 Olympics gold medal in freestyle wrestling. 'The Messenger' later ventured into MMA and achieved success there. During his time in the UFC, the 37-year-old managed to win titles in two different weight divisions.
How did Henry Cejudo react to Gable Steveson winning the Olympic medal?
In August 2021, Gable Steveson won the Olympic gold medal in the super heavyweight division of freestyle wrestling at the age of just 21.
This resulted in former UFC champion Henry Cejudo taking to social media to weigh in on the Minnesota native's accomplishment. In a post uploaded on 'X', 'The Messenger' showered praise on Steveson and said:
"Welcome to Olympic champion mountain. Since the first time I saw you wrestle at the trials, I knew you were special. The impossible is nothing for whatever you decide to do after wrestling. Whether it's wrestling, NFL, WWE or UFC."