UFC legend Chris Weidman has picked out an area of improvement for Gable Steveson after his debut win at UFC 329.
At UFC 329, Gable Steveson got his UFC career off to a winning start with a nice finish over Elisha Ellison. While it wasn’t the dramatic 15-second knockout that some had expected, Gable still looked really solid in there against a very game Ellison.
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Coming out of it, critics are talking about some of the possible holes in Steveson’s game, whereas others are ready to throw him right in there against some of the very best that the heavyweight division has to offer.
In a recent breakdown of the event, Chris Weidman weighed in on what he thought of Steveson.
How impressed were you at Gable Steveson’s UFC debut?
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Weidman on Steveson’s UFC debut
“He shot one takedown. An Olympic gold medalist, he shot one take down,” Weidman said on Deep Waters. “He got into a guillotine for a second, he kind of panicked. Which makes me think he is still raw. You’ll see that with wrestlers when they first start fighting. They just think they can take everybody down.
“They get in on a shot beautifully and then they feel a guillotine and they panic. They panic and just get the hell out of there. As he gets better, as he gets some of this greenness out of him, I think we’ll see him lean into those takedowns and not be afraid of the guillotine.”
Quotes via Bloody Elbow
At the age of just 26, there’s still plenty of time for Gable to learn and grow as a mixed martial artist. Of course, in equal measure, the promotion will be eager to see just how quickly he can climb the ladder in the UFC’s heavyweight division after a strong start to his career.
Do you believe Steveson has what it takes to go on and become a UFC world champion? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below, BJPENN Nation!