Olympic Gold Medalist Gable Steveson has made his future intentions clear, stating that he is currently focused on his burgeoning MMA career and is not interested in competing in professional wrestling at this time. Steveson recently made his successful MMA debut for Legacy Fighting Alliance, securing a TKO victory over Braden Peterson. The win has seemingly solidified his commitment to pursuing a career in combat sports over a return to the squared circle, where he had a brief and unremarkable run with WWE’s NXT brand after the Olympics. His comments come as a new pro wrestling promotion, Real American Freestyle Wrestling, is set to launch, a brand that many thought would be a natural fit for the decorated amateur wrestler.
During an appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, Steveson was asked if he had any interest in competing for the new wrestling promotion.
“Um, right now, no. Right now, I had the biggest rush of my life putting on those gloves and getting that victory. I wanna keep it that way… I wanna stick to MMA. I wanna 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 then just keep it going, and man, just believe in myself. You gotta focus on one thing, and I wanna focus on this.”
He then elaborated on his ultimate goal in the world of mixed martial arts.
“I would like to take this slow. I would like to go where I need to go. I’m 1-0. I’m focused on being 2-0, nothing else… Man, if it’s there and the UFC looks at me or the PFL or whoever. My goal is to be UFC Champion. I wanna go out there and be with the best, I wanna look the best in the face 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 wanna 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 keep showing the project as we go along.”
H/T to Fightful for the transcription. Thanks for checking out this article. Make sure to follow Jeff Jarrett and all things GFE on Facebook.