The Gable Steveson project continues Saturday at UFC 331 in Los Angeles. And as his second UFC appearance looms, many are left wondering how long it will take for the Olympic gold medal wrestler to break into legitimate heavyweight contention.
Steveson, 26, is only four fights deep into his MMA career, with his most recent appearance serving as his promotional debut in the UFC. Tasked with Elisha Ellison at UFC 329 in July, Steveson scored his fourth straight first-round knockout, leading to this weekend’s follow-up outing against two-fight UFC veteran Sean Sharaf (4-2).
Heavyweight is arguably shallower than it’s ever been, which provides an easy path to a fast track up the rankings for someone with Steveson’s extensive combat sports background. Yet UFC Hall of Famer Chael Sonnen isn’t sure Steveson is putting in the required effort to move quickly.
Sonnen explained his thoughts on Wednesday’s edition of “The Ariel Helwani Show.”
“Gable has not gone and demanded anything,” Sonnen told Uncrowned. “Bo Nickal played it the same way. He said, ‘Look, my contract is my contract. I’ll take as many easy fights as they want to give me. I will get to the hard fights later, but why am I gonna force that?’
“Maybe that’s what Gable’s doing. Maybe he questions himself. Maybe he’s being smart about it. But when Gable comes on your program and doesn’t say, ‘Give me Curtis Blaydes. Give me Sergei Pavlovich.’ When he doesn’t say that, he’s not going to get it. It’s going to be a slower rise, and one year from now, yeah, Gable’s going to be a super hot prospect if he continues on this path. People are going to want to see him. He’s gonna be a main-card guy. He’s gonna be one of the guys, but not one of the guys we’re discussing for a title — unless he changes his approach and starts to demand those things.”
Before Steveson landed on MMA as his path forward, he tried his hand in professional wrestling for WWE and in the NFL. Steveson then returned to his collegiate wrestling roots and, while simutanouesly getting his start in MMA, has competed in Mike Perry’s Dirty Boxing promotion and Real American Freestyle.
Sonnen’s comparison to Nickal is that of someone who carried similar levels of hype as Steveson while also bringing a notable wrestling background into MMA. Coincidentally, Nickal also entered the UFC in only his fourth pro bout before facing a trio of relatively lower-quality opponents and then finally meeting his first veteran contender.
Ultimately, Sonnen doesn’t expect Steveson’s nice-guy demeanor to fade, which will put him on a path similar to the one Nickal has taken in the UFC middleweight division.
“MMA as a whole is the biggest bunch of fake tough guys I’ve ever been around, but there is no bigger bunch of wimps than the heavyweights,” Sonnen said.
“What do you get if you call out Gable? You get an opportunity to stop what the fans know is a big prospect. You get guaranteed invited to the press conference, which most of you have never been. You’re guaranteed a featured spot on a numbered event. Everything that these guys claim they’ve been chasing their whole life — everybody’s a tough guy until it’s time to get tough.
“They’re not going to call him out is my point. They’re a bunch of chickens, so he’s going to have to call for the fight, and they’re not going to do it. A year from now, he’ll be a hot prospect, but nothing more.”
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