Gable Steveson has been a controversial figure in the sports community after he recently made his return to wrestling. And why was that? That’s because a wrestler like him coming to the NCAA sometimes overshadows the junior aspirants who are looking forward to making their name in the scene. However, even if he just made his return to wrestling, he’s still looking forward to opportunities in different sports, especially MMA.

It’s not a new thing for Steveson to find himself indulging in different sports, and this time after his interaction with UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones, he got more keen on taking a dip in MMA. He’s surely a sports fanatic, and giving his time to attend a camp with the American MMA star made him tease this potential move of his.

A potential move for the two-time NCAA champion

Since Gable Steveson has been in the spotlight of the community after his NCAA return, he’s been attending many interviews , and this time he has found himself on The Ariel Helwani Show. The host, Ariel Helwani, asked him a ton of questions, regarding his WWE exit, move to the NFL with the Buffalo Bills, and eventually, his interaction with Jon Jones.

“After being in that camp with Jon Jones, that definitely put a major spark in me to go out there and do MMA. Not sure the promotion yet. But Jon definitely lit a fire under me,” Steveson remarked about his interaction with the UFC heavyweight champion, and also added, “He was like ‘Hey, I think you should go back to wrestling, I think you should try MMA, we have a great team out here in Albuquerque if you want to join us.'”

Stressing the statements made by Jones, the NCAA wrestler mentioned that he got immediately hooked on the sport. Like in any other combat sport, there’s a learning curve in MMA, but with a little bit of motivation from the UFC heavyweight champion himself, Steveson was able to get the basics really fast. Furthermore, he credited his own experience in sports like wrestling, boxing, and jiu-jitsu, as it will help him learn MMA much faster.

Helwani also had a query if Steveson would be competing in the professional scene anytime soon. However, the two-time NCAA champion denied it, as he mentioned that he doesn’t have any MMA fights scheduled for the next three years. He’s still discussing his newfound interest, and in a positive lens, he is confident about excelling in his MMA endeavor. 

Only time will tell what Steveson’s future holds for him, as he is a sports star who always has some kind of surprise up his sleeves. Similarly, his return to college wrestling was something really unexpected after he abandoned his dreams to pursue WWE. However, this decision by the 24-year-old received not many positive reactions from the fans, as one of them even stressed the negative impact of the situation, giving a 38-year-old example.

The contrast presented by the community on Gable Steveson’s return

NCAA is a junior category of wrestling, and watching an Olympic champion like Gable Steveson make a return, aiming for his third NCAA title, wasn’t very welcoming by the community. One user on X, who goes by the username @dbshada1, was very critical of his comeback, as they mentioned the wrestler’s professional career and other financial aspects that are related to this decision. They were also confused, as they couldn’t understand the way Steveson got back into a junior category despite winning the NCAA title two times and even an Olympic gold medal.

Furthermore, the social media user gave a contrast by stating the career of legend Bo Jackson. Even if he was a talented individual, the multi-sports star faced a career crisis back in 1986 after traveling to Tampa to meet the Buccaneers for a pre-NFL draft. Jackson was also not interested in giving his time to the NFL team, as he was much more interested in playing baseball, and eventually found himself with a contract from the Kansas City Royals. Later on, he also signed an NFL contract with the Los Angeles Raiders to participate in football.

The lines that were drawn between these two sports stars, who have a big gap between themselves, showed how much the NCAA has changed over the years, and the community is concerned as such kind of returns might affect the aspiring athletes who are always looking forward to an opportunity.