Olympic Gold Medalist Gable Steveson Passes On MMA, Signs Multiyear Deal With WWE

Gable Steveson said he’s finally accomplished his childhood dream, but that isn’t with any MMA promotion.

U.S. Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson announced Thursday that he signed with the WWE with a multi-year contract.

Childhood dream accomplished.. I have officially signed with the @WWE!!! Thank you for the opportunity!! LETS WORK 💪🏽

— Gable Steveson (@GableSteveson) September 9, 2021

Steveson took the combat sports world by storm after winning freestyle gold in the Tokyo Olympic Games this past summer. Steveson steamrolled through most of his opponents, and in the final round, he scored last minute takedowns for the gold.

Steveson is the first wrestler on WWE’s roster to have an Olympic gold under his belt since Kurt Angle.

Following his victory, Steveson was reportedly in talks with UFC and Bellator MMA, but it was WWE who the 21-year-old ultimately signed with.

The wrestler is still in his senior year at The University of Minnesota, but thanks to the new NCAA Names, Image, and Likeness (NIL) policy, he is allowed to do both.

During the speculation, some told Steveson to take the Brock Lesnar approach: start in the WWE, build up star power and then transition to MMA.

“I’ve been on WWE since I was really young,” Steveson told ESPN. “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.”