NCAA DI Wrestling Championships final, one final match, one last takedown to seal a legacy that would probably take years to catch up with. What could have been collegiate wrestling’s biggest comeback was going as planned. Just one glitch, and it turned into an upset! The mountain that didn’t budge for 73 straight matches on the NCAA mat was finally brought down. On March 22, a crowd of nearly 18,826 gathered to witness history being created. The duel was going as anticipated, with Gable in the lead. But the last 21 seconds changed everything. The Minnesota star was tackled down by Oklahoma’s Wyatt Hendrickson and took away a 5-4 victory. And just like that, after six long years, the Olympian was handed a loss in his collegiate career (the last one came in 2019). Gable Steveson’s dream of claiming the third NCAA title was broken, but as they say, there’s always more.  And how can we forget about his other wish?

Appearing on the Pat McAfee show on March 24, 2025, Gable Steveson said, “I’ve not spoken to Dana personally. That’s one meeting that I would love to have face-to-face, you know. I’ve been waiting a long time to see him.” Despite the wish of the wrestler to shake hands with the UFC president, it has still been in the bucket for the past few years. He recalled, “After the 2021 Olympics, he reached out to me and wanted me to come see him in Vegas and everything else.”

Steveson did go to Vegas, but the meeting could not happen for now, but he still says it’s the “…one meeting that I would love to have.” All that the Olympian needs is that “if I can get in front of his face and really pitch who I am and pitch who he can see and who I will be, I think that’ll be the greatest thing.” Though he might not need it because White may already have an idea!

Reminding the world of UFC and wrestling’s connection, Dana White said in an interview three years back about Gable, “You know he’ll (Gable) be in town this weekend so I think we’re gonna hook up and talk.” This was about the Vegas meeting, but Gable, at that time, was busy with the WWE PPV event, SummerSlam, so they didn’t meet. White did say that, “Obviously, there’s a lot of work for him to do before he could make it to the UFC. But we’ll see what happens.”

The difference between wrestling on the mat and fighting in the octagon is the same as Steveson’s WWE career and collegiate career.  For starters, you will probably go without a bleeding head in collegiate wrestling. Whereas in the UFC, you might go home while bleeding. But Steveson is having his training, getting better. And now he is looking towards MMA.

Is Gable Steveson making an MMA debut?

As of now, Gable’s training to be worthy of Octagon is underway under the watchful eyes of Jon Jones. The man has the most number of title fights in the history of UFC and is described by the Olympian as a “great mentor.”  He has been with the 2025 Big Ten champions since 2021, and Gable wishes, “People know a guy named Jon Jones…he’s pretty damn good, and I appreciate his efforts of trying to lead me into the right direction and kinda taking my back and giving me the direction I need.”

As far as the preparation to fight in the cage goes, the former Gopher is getting ready. He said, “Just making sure I can get my hands certified and ready, making sure that I can see punches and make sure that I’m comfortable in the cage.” He better get comfortable in that cage because once comfortable, it only gets uncomfortable from there, and that’s the way. This return is also important for him to get over the NCAA loss because, no matter how much he tries, that one loss, the one loss in his last match, must be daunting to him.

Also, he did mention, “… I’ve been putting on the gloves, doing jiu-jitsu classes, trying to get ready for an MMA career.” Gable’s debut in MMA also becomes important because it’s a rarity for the UFC to hire someone with a 0-0 record. Only the best in the world—CM Punk, the beast incarnate, Brock Lesnar, Bobby Lashley, and a very few others—have made it with that record. What do you think? How good can Gable be in the Octagon? Let us know!