Gable Steveson: I Could Be UFC Champion In Less Than 18 Months

Gable Steveson is past the hinting phase and is now openly stating that a run in the UFC is entirely possible.

Kayla Harrison and Claressa Shields are two Olympic gold medalists who have recently made the move to MMA. Both have landed in the PFL, but it looks like the UFC will at least have an opportunity to successfully sign one of their own, in newly minted freestyle wrestling gold medalist Gable Steveson.

Tuesday, Steveson sent a virtual wave Dana White’s way, signaling that he was interested in opening the lines of communication between himself and the UFC. In a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Steveson would ditch the emojis and verbally express that he indeed might just decide to venture into mixed martial arts, with the UFC being the potential landing spot.

“Most definitely, I’m a fight fan,” Steveson said. “Who wouldn’t want to be the baddest man on the planet? Who wouldn’t want to hold that UFC championship belt? I’m holding the gold medal and I’m the baddest wrestler on the planet. Why wouldn’t I want to go out there and be the baddest UFC heavyweight champion?

“I sent that tweet out to Dana. I’m sure he saw it, I’m sure someone from his desk got a hold of him. But like I said, all options will be open.”

Another decorated wrestler who famously made the MMA transition, Ben Askren, coated Steveson with high praise, stating that Steveson would be unbeatable with 18 months of proper training. Steveson is aware of this comment from Askren, and he doesn’t disagree.

“I saw the tweet from Ben Askren and I do believe that, too,” Steveson said. “I do believe that with my wrestling skills and me putting on some striking skills, I can be the champion in less than 18 months. I can go out there and dominate my way through the heavyweight field.”

Do you think Gable Steveson could win the UFC heavyweight title after 18 months of training?