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Gable Steveson has his first UFC win under his belt.
The Olympic wrestling champion flattened Elisha Ellison in less than three minutes Saturday night at UFC 329, earning a first-round knockout in his much-anticipated UFC debut. Steveson (4-0), a blue-chip heavyweight prospect who entered the weekend as the biggest betting favorite on the entire card, needed just 2:31 to stop Ellison with a blitz of knees and punches.
"Time will tell [where I stand]," he said afterward. "I'm a great athlete, I'm a great person. I can go out there and do special things, as you can see. Time will tell that story."
Though he passed his first UFC test, it wasn't all smooth sailing for Steveson.
Despite the long odds, Ellison (5-3) came to scrap, stopping Steveson's lone takedown attempt with a choke attempt and tagging the Olympian with several flush shots in the brief contest. Ellison landed 14 strikes in total, though Steveson ate them all and continued marching forward with a surprisingly diverse array of offense, mixing various kicks, clinch knees to the head and body, and looping hooks in a high-paced affair.
The hype behind Steveson is well deserved. The 26-year-old is one of the greatest wrestling talents of his era. Along with being a two-time NCAA Division I national champion and two-time Dan Hodge Trophy winner — the award given annually to collegiate athletics' top freestyle wrestler — he is best known for his run through the 2020 Olympic Games, where he stunned the global field at just 21 years old to become the youngest freestyle wrestler in his division to ever win gold.
Steveson has since emerged as one of the most highly-touted heavyweight prospects in MMA history. Entering Saturday night's debut, he was already a perfect 4-0 with four knockout wins across multiple combat sports disciplines since making his pro MMA debut in September with a highlight-reel first-round stoppage of Braden Petersen. Steveson transitioned over to Mike Perry's Dirty Boxing promotion for another impressive 15-second knockout of Billy Swanson in October, then followed it with a brutal 24-second knockout of Kevin Hein in an MMA return bout in late November.
Stevenson kicked off 2026 with another first-round MMA stoppage in February, this time against Hugo Lezama, for which Uncrowned was cageside in Mexico City to document.
Steveson also had brief stints with the NFL's Buffalo Bills and WWE before making the full-time transition to MMA.
The Olympic champion has often cited UFC legend Jon Jones as his primary mentor in MMA. Jones was one of Steveson's cornermen for Saturday's successful debut.
Check out complete UFC 329 results, highlights and round-by-round updates here.
Continue reading...
The Olympic wrestling champion flattened Elisha Ellison in less than three minutes Saturday night at UFC 329, earning a first-round knockout in his much-anticipated UFC debut. Steveson (4-0), a blue-chip heavyweight prospect who entered the weekend as the biggest betting favorite on the entire card, needed just 2:31 to stop Ellison with a blitz of knees and punches.
"Time will tell [where I stand]," he said afterward. "I'm a great athlete, I'm a great person. I can go out there and do special things, as you can see. Time will tell that story."
THAT'S HOW YOU MAKE A DEBUT
Gable Steveson shows out on the biggest stage with the first round KO!
[ #UFC329 | LIVE ON @ParamountPlus ] pic.twitter.com/cEg4CJTyuw
— UFC on Paramount+ (@UFConParamount) July 12, 2026
Though he passed his first UFC test, it wasn't all smooth sailing for Steveson.
Despite the long odds, Ellison (5-3) came to scrap, stopping Steveson's lone takedown attempt with a choke attempt and tagging the Olympian with several flush shots in the brief contest. Ellison landed 14 strikes in total, though Steveson ate them all and continued marching forward with a surprisingly diverse array of offense, mixing various kicks, clinch knees to the head and body, and looping hooks in a high-paced affair.
The hype behind Steveson is well deserved. The 26-year-old is one of the greatest wrestling talents of his era. Along with being a two-time NCAA Division I national champion and two-time Dan Hodge Trophy winner — the award given annually to collegiate athletics' top freestyle wrestler — he is best known for his run through the 2020 Olympic Games, where he stunned the global field at just 21 years old to become the youngest freestyle wrestler in his division to ever win gold.
Steveson has since emerged as one of the most highly-touted heavyweight prospects in MMA history. Entering Saturday night's debut, he was already a perfect 4-0 with four knockout wins across multiple combat sports disciplines since making his pro MMA debut in September with a highlight-reel first-round stoppage of Braden Petersen. Steveson transitioned over to Mike Perry's Dirty Boxing promotion for another impressive 15-second knockout of Billy Swanson in October, then followed it with a brutal 24-second knockout of Kevin Hein in an MMA return bout in late November.
Stevenson kicked off 2026 with another first-round MMA stoppage in February, this time against Hugo Lezama, for which Uncrowned was cageside in Mexico City to document.
Steveson also had brief stints with the NFL's Buffalo Bills and WWE before making the full-time transition to MMA.
The Olympic champion has often cited UFC legend Jon Jones as his primary mentor in MMA. Jones was one of Steveson's cornermen for Saturday's successful debut.
Check out complete UFC 329 results, highlights and round-by-round updates here.
Continue reading...
