Gable Steveson knows what it takes to be great at something. That's precisely why he's in no rush to prove he's great at MMA. In an era where fighters try to sprint to UFC titles, Steveson sees UFC 331 as one step in a more calculated process.
Steveson won an Olympic gold medal and two NCAA Division I championships before throwing his first professional punch. Those accomplishments came from years of repetition. One year removed from his MMA debut, and preparing for his second UFC fight on Saturday, Steveson is applying the same patience to a sport he's still figuring out.
"It's like a college football player playing his first game at Alabama," Steveson told CBS Sports. "You try to rush it and make sure to get things done in an overly correct way. This time, in my second appearance, I'm going to slow things down, really pick it apart, be a natural at what I do, let the crowd gravitate to me and dominate." red event and UFC Fight Night is included with your subscription!
Plans start as low as $8.99/month or $89.99/year! Steveson has barely scratched the surface of wrestling in MMA. He discovered that his hands carried legitimate power in his professional MMA debut, and he's been toying with new tools ever since.
His wrestling isn't going anywhere. He threw a flying knee against Elisha Ellison in his UFC debut in July, and plans to keep experimenting on Saturday against Sean Sharaf. "We were practicing spinning back elbows before we came in," Steveson said.
"You can see something new is coming. People are going to feel it. On Saturday, you're going to see a whole other level of Gable Steveson.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
