Gable Steveson’s next fight won’t come in an MMA cage.
After making his successful pro debut in the sport earlier this month, Steveson spoke about his intention to focus solely on MMA moving forward. The Olympic gold medalist wrestler told Uncrowned’s “The Ariel Helwani Show” he hoped to secure one more fight this year and continue to gain experience — but that fight will now come in the Dirty Boxing ring.
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The promotion announced Wednesday that Steveson (1-0 MMA) is set to face Billy Swanson (4-3 MMA) at Dirty Boxing 4 on Oct. 30 in Nashville. Both men will be making their Dirty Boxing debuts, and as of right now, the heavyweight contest is the only fight on the card.
The Olympic champ’s trek into Dirty Boxing continues his pursuit of unique ventures after brief stints in the NFL and WWE. Created by UFC veteran turned bare-knuckle boxer Mike Perry, Dirty Boxing’s ruleset prohibits grappling and essentially hosts boxing matches that allow backfists and forearm, palm and elbow strikes, as well as limited ground-and-pound. In terms of hand wear, all fighters compete with 5-ounce MMA gloves.
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Steveson, 25, scored a thunderous victory in his debut MMA fight when he took on Braden Peterson at an LFA event Sept. 12. Needing only 98 seconds to put away Peterson with vicious ground-and-pound, Steveson came out of the bout unscathed and ready to stay active.
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To start his career in MMA, Steveson has garnered support from several all-time combat sports greats, such as former two-division UFC champion Jon Jones, who has glowingly endorsed him. In the wake of Wednesday’s news, Jones even took to social media, predicting that his teammate and friend will one day become a UFC champion.
“It’s not a matter of if he can, it’s a matter of when. I’ve had many great teammates over the years, but I’ve always said if I would ever be a coach, it would have to be a wrestler who was completely committed to success. I found my guy and I’m excited to add world championship coach to my resume.”
Dirty Boxing will be much more of a foreign territory for Steveson than his opponent, Swanson. “Big Sexy” competed in a Muay Thai match in 2024 before taking his talents to the bare-knuckle boxing world with BKFC last month. He lost both bouts by stoppage.
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Prior to that, Swanson’s past two MMA fights came in the PFL and Bellator cages.