Dana White Wanted Gable Steveson To Compete In Contender Series

UFC president Dana White was reportedly interested in roping in Olympic gold-medalist Gable Steveson, but this wasn’t going to be a straight shot to the promotion had the top wrestler agreed to White’s offer.

According to MMA journalist Marc Raimondi, White wanted Steveson to get more octagon experience by first participating Dana White’s Contender Series. However, the idea was seemingly never put forward to the Olympian.

“We never talked about that, so I have no clue,” the 21-year-old gold medalist told ESPN.

He has signed a contract with WWE.

“I’ve been on WWE since I was really young. I was on guys like Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman for a very long time. So growing up watching them, me being an entertainer on the wrestling mat, it just felt like it was the right choice,” Steveson previously said.

He feels that adapting to the company’s atmosphere won’t be an uphill task for him considering that he has a wrestling background.

“I think with the charisma and the confidence and the attitude that I bring to the wrestling mat, it will translate over to the WWE really fast, and I feel that I can … go on screen and have a good role and know what to do perfectly.”