The former UFC champion in two weight categories, Henry Cejudo, believes that the gold medalist of the 2020 Olympics in freestyle wrestling, Gable Stevenson, will eventually be able to defeat Jon Jones and the current heavyweight champion of the organization, Francis Ngannou. According to Cejudo, for this, Stevenson needs several years of training according to the rules of MMA.
As a wrestler-turned-mixed martial artist, it’s Cejudo. Henry won a gold medal in freestyle wrestling (just like Steveson) in 2008, and then became a 2 weight class champion in the UFC.
According TMZ Sports, talked to Triple C, they asked how Gable would fare in the UFC.
“I do believe, like within the next couple of years, he could beat a guy like Jon Jones or even Francis Ngannou. He’s like, he’s the biggest threat because of his wrestling pace, which is extremely scary,” Cejudo told us.
But, Henry made it clear, Gable couldn’t just walk into an Octagon right now, without any training, and beat 2 of the biggest men on the planet.
“He’s a real heavyweight. But, right now, if you were to put him in there right now, Jon Jones would hurt him. Francis Ngannou would hurt him,” Cejudo said.
“And I’ve been there before when I first fought Demetrious Johnson. And I, you know, I had already had stand up and whatnot, and I got knocked out at 2 minutes and 36 seconds. So, you do have to respect the game.”
FYI, Henry started his UFC career 4-0. before facing the champ, Mighty Mouse. Johnson beat Cejudo at UFC 197 in 2016 via TKO. Years later, in 2018, HC won a rematch against DJ – becoming flyweight champion.
Of course, 21-year-old Steveson – who just won a gold medal – has options on top of options.
WWE is reportedly interested in the wrestling star (GS will be at Summer Slam this weekend). Gable also says he’s been hit up by multiple NFL teams. And, then there’s the UFC.