The UFC heavyweight division is frozen in ice, and so is people’s opinion on the division king. Especially since Ciryl Gane’s no-contest decision against Tom Aspinall, the MMA community is convinced that Aspinall is truly one of the division’s best, had he not suffered an eye injury. However, not everyone is on the same page.
UFC welterweight legend Matt Brown went against the grain, naming an underdog to beat the current HW champion. What took the MMA world by surprise was the fact that Brown’s pick made his MMA debut just last year. However, with two knockout victories under Jon Jones’ training, Brown thinks highly of the Olympic Gold Medalist.
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Matt Brown backs potential HW Champion in a bold claim against Tom Aspinall
In a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Brown emerged as a contrarian voice, backing up-and-comer Gable Steveson against current HW champion Tom Aspinall. “He could be champion literally today. I think if he went in and fought Tom Aspinall or Ciryl Gane… I don’t think there’s a chance anybody has against him,” he opined.
Taking his claims up a notch, Brown revealed, “I mean, obviously, you always have a chance in MMA, but I think he could be champion tomorrow. I’d pick him to beat the champion today, you know, keep it real. Yeah, he’s a monster. And so yeah, I wouldn’t put my money against it if they fought tomorrow.”
While this might sound far-fetched, there’s definitely some truth to it, whether we believe it or not. Training under Jon Jones, who often positions Steveson as the next big thing in the UFC, Steveson made his blazing MMA arrival with a 2-0 KO wins, both under 2 minutes, combined! Moreover, a 15-second KO in his Dirty Boxing debut cemented him as the hottest new prospect.
Moreover, his experience in wrestling easily places him as a threat that you can’t ignore, even though he’s still new to the MMA scene. In fact, as an Olympic gold medalist in freestyle wrestling in 2020, Steveson’s grappling is undoubtedly one of the strongest, which can serve as a crucial weapon against Aspinall.
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Brown’s opinions don’t come from nowhere, being one of the longest tenured and most respected UFC fighters. Explaining his stance, Brown tweeted, “You guys will call me stupid or crazy or other internet dweeb insults but remember Lesnar did it against a tougher division in just 4 fights and Gable is better than Lesnar imo… heavyweights are different!”
While Daniel Cormier follows the rhetoric, he believes Steveson needs to make one slight adjustment.
Daniel Cormier urged Gable Steveson to change his coach
Daniel Cormier doesn’t question Gable Steveson’s potential inside the UFC. However, he thinks that if the athlete continues to train under Jon Jones, he might very well never close the division hierarchy.
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“I believe that there are some other factors that may slow down [his development]. Well, his coach is Jon Jones. I think that as long as he lets the other coaches coach him, yes. But if he is like, if Jon is actually coaching him, I don’t know if he’ll [reach those heights],” Cormier shared with an air of finality.
Cormier’s long-storied rivalry with Jones is nothing new, even after circumstances have forced them to cross paths again. However, this opinion has nothing to do with his personal beef. For DC, being a good coach boils down to sacrifices, something he doubts Jones would be able to do as an active fighter.
Quipping on what makes retired fighter, Khabib Nurmagomedov, such a great coach, Cormier added, “You’ve got to be selfless. I watched Khabib spend a lot of time away from his family to be with those guys, to make sure they’re ready. And I don’t know, I just don’t know that that’s Jon.”
Whether Steveson takes this suggestion with a grain of salt or not, one thing is clear. Gable Steveson is quickly becoming a hard-to-ignore equation in the MMA scene, even long before his UFC debut. Do you believe Steveson could soon be the reigning HW champion? Comment below.
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The post UFC Legend Backs Olympic Gold Medalist Trained by Jon Jones to Beat Tom Aspinall “Today” appeared first on EssentiallySports.
