Gable Steveson could become a huge star within MMA.
The former WWE star had his first professional fight at LFA 217 and Gable Steveson beat Braden Peterson like he’s been fighting for years. Granted, Steveson is not on the level of Conor McGregor or his mentor, Jon Jones, but it’s still a strong debut that highlighted the promising MMA career of Gable Steveson. The 25-year-old appeared on The Ariel Helwani Show and described the feeling he got from his impressive win.
“It’s good. I went out there and did the best I could and came out with a dominating performance, as predicted so, just it feels good to go out there and get locked into the cage and feel the real thing.”
Not surprisingly, Gable is ready to step back into the octagon again. He wants to show the world that he's the real deal inside of that octagon.
“Of course, yeah. I would like to get back out there and keep showing the world what I’m made of. As you saw, the big takedown to the ground and pound. But man, there’s so much more and I’m excited for people to see.” Helwani then questioned Steveson about quickly he would like to fight again, and the heavyweight fighter responded, “As quick as possible. I would like to stay active, I would like to keep being me, I would like to keep showing the world who I am and you only get better by keep getting in there and I wanna keep being in there.”
Steveson isn’t looking to stay out of the cage for long as he teases a fight again before the year ends. “I got a little thing about November. So I’m hoping around then or just before the new year ends.”
Interestingly enough, Steveson was asked whether he hand any interest in trying for the Olympics again and he’s remaining focused on MMA at the moment, “I want to stick to MMA. I want to take it one day at a time. I'm 1-0 right now. I would like to be 2-0, 3-0, 4-0, and just keep it going, and just believe in myself. You've got to focus on one thing, and I want to focus on this."
Not surprisingly, he wants to be a UFC Champion, but he understands that he can’t jump the gun so soon.
"My goal is to be UFC [heavyweight] champion," Steveson said. "I want to go out there and be with the best, look the best in the face, go out there and show the world what I'm made of — and I know I can do it. If those fans think I'm ready, and they want to see Gable Steveson where he needs to go, of course. But in my eyes, do I have things to work on? Of course, and I will keep working on those things and keeping showing the [progress] as we go along.
I've never tried to jump the gun. The younger version of me — I'm 25 now — if I was 21, I might have said, 'Hey man, throw me out there and let me see the sharks.' But right now, I know where I stand and what I can be. I'm honored to be in a spot with great people around me — Jon Jones, Brandon Gibson, Greg Jackson. I have a good team with me. When they say the time is right, we'll be right there."