"Who wouldn't want to be the baddest man on the planet?"- Gable Steveson explains why a potential move to the UFC makes sense
Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson has elaborated on his intention to make the transition into mixed martial arts and sign with the UFC.
On the heels of his spectacular win at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the heavyweight freestyle wrestler sent out a cryptic message on social media that stoked rumors of his supposed foray to cage fighting. In an apparent effort to catch Dana White's attention, Steveson tweeted an emoji of a waving hand and tagged the UFC boss.
In a recent interview with MMA Fighting, the star Olympian confirmed that he's indeed interested in pursuing a career in professional MMA. Steveson revealed that, after proving himself to be the world's best wrestler today, his next goal is to cement his claim as the best combat sports athlete on the planet:
"Who wouldn't want to be the baddest man on the planet?" Steveson asked rhetoriacally. "Who wouldn't want to hold that UFC championship belt? I'm holding the gold medal and I'm the baddest wrestler in the planet. Why wouldn't I want to go there and be the baddest UFC heavyweight champion?"
The "baddest man on the planet" monicker is a title that's often been bestowed upon the current UFC heavyweight champion, Francis Ngannou. Brock Lesnar, who Gable Steveson considers somewhat of a mentor, once owned that prestigious honor too.
But the 21-year-old prodigy reminded White that he has to pony up to get him to sign a contract. The University of Minnesota varsity wrestler is expected to receive offers from different promotions, including sports entertainment giant WWE:
"So, I sent that tweet out to Dana and I'm sure he saw it," said Steveson. "I'm sure someone from his desk got ahold of him. But I said all options will be open."
Would Gable Steveson do well in the UFC?
Dominant wrestlers historically fare tremendously inside the octagon. In that respect, Gable Steveson has a solid foundation for pursuing a career in professional MMA.
Gable Steveson could follow in the footsteps of Daniel Cormier and Henry Cejudo, two former Olympians who went on to become champions in the UFC. According to Cejudo, there's no reason why the gold medalist couldn't succeed in the octagon:
"Welcome to Olympic Champion Mountain," Cejudo told Steveson on Twitter. "Since the first time I saw you wrestle at the trials I knew you were special. The impossible is nothing for what ever you decide to do after wrestling. Whether it’s Wrestling, NFL, WWE, or UFC."
Meanwhile, former collegiate wrestler and welterweight MMA star Ben Askren said he believes Gable Steveson only needs several months of basic MMA training to become an unstoppable force in the octagon.