Former UFC star Tyron Woodley is predicting that top prospect Gable Steveson will become the new UFC heavyweight champion.
The UFC recently signed Steveson to a contract, and he will make his promotional debut at UFC 329, which takes place on July 11 in Las Vegas. His opponent has not been revealed yet.
There is a lot to like about Steveson, a former Olympic gold medalist in freestyle wrestling, plus a brief member of the NFL’s Buffalo Bills. He is an amazing athlete who is 3-0 already in MMA with three finishes, plus he has fought in Dirty Boxing. He looks like a blue-chip prospect, and at age 25, the sky is the limit.
According to a former UFC champ, Steveson has what it takes to win the heavyweight belt.
Tyron Woodley Predicts Gable Steveson Will Beat Tom Aspinall
Woodley, the former UFC welterweight champion, was recently interviewed by TalkSPORT BET and was asked his thoughts on Steveson. Woodley is bullish on Steveson and thinks he will hold the UFC heavyweight title sooner rather than later.
“Gable Steveson will become the heavyweight champion. He can do it this year if he wants to. Tom Aspinall will get tortured by Gable right now. Tom looked sloppy against Ciryl Gane before he got poked in the eye,” Woodley said (via MMAjunkie.com).
“Gable has got powerful hands. All his fights are finishes. He has crazy wrestling, crazy athletic ability. He’s hungry. You think he’s still happy about losing the NCAA championship in the last three seconds? Hell no. I don’t see a matchup in the UFC now at heavyweight that he does not win.”
Woodley also told Heavy.com’s Giancarlo Aulino in a recent interview that he fancies a fight between Steveson and the aforementioned Gane.
Gable Steveson Will Likely Be Built Up Slowly by the UFC
Knowing how the UFC operates, they will likely build up Steveson slowly. We recently took a closer look at potential opponents for the prospect in an article here at Heavy.com, listing fighters such as Thomas Petersen, Denzel Freeman, Tyrell Fotune, Tai Tuivasa, and Marcin Tybura as potential options. However, sources close to Heavy confirmed that the UFC has matched up Tybura with another opponent for an upcoming summer fight card, so he won’t be fighting Steveson. However, the other four names still make a lot of sense.
Since Steveson is so young, the UFC does not have to rush him up the rankings, and they can take their time with him. The UFC heavyweight division is also in a bit of a weird transition phase right now. At UFC Freedom 250 in June, Alex Pereira will fight Ciryl Gane for the interim UFC heavyweight title, with the winner presumably fighting the champion Aspinall later this year when he returns from an eye injury. In the meantime, there will be lots of other fights to be made, including for Steveson, who is likely going to fight someone unranked in his UFC debut.
With UFC 329 coming up soon, look for the UFC to announce Steveson’s opponent for his first fight very soon, potentially at UFC 328 next week, as they may be saving the big announcement for a numbered card.
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Former UFC Star Predicts Gable Steveson Will Become Heavyweight Champion appeared first on Heavy Sports.