Legendary coach Greg Jackson has seen it all.
For decades, Jackson has been one of the most recognizable and respected names in combat sports, making the high regard he holds for his pupil Gable Steveson all the more impressive.
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“He’s such a sweetheart, and good lord, is he a super athlete,” Jackson recently told MMA Junkie. “He’s super fast. I’ve locked up with a lot of people – and I’m not saying I’m a great fighter or anything. I lock up. I warm up with people, whatever. I used to do a lot more when I was younger. He’s just so fast and so strong. It’s just very rare that you lock up with somebody as fast and strong as he is. And he’ll move around with me without hurting me at all, which is great for the old guy. Just feeling his athlete ability, his ability to change quickly from striking to takedowns and back again, it’s just phenomenal. He’s just a really special guy in a lot of ways. That’s not just athletically. He’s a sweetheart of a guy, too, and very respectful. He’s an all-around good dude.”
Jackson, who has long coached as JacksonWink in Albuquerque, N.M., was introduced to Steveson (3-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) by all-time MMA great Jon Jones. From the moment Jackson started working with him, he said it was evident Steveson was special. For Jackson, it’s been about remaining calculated and a realist with Steveson – despite the pressure from outside forces about how fast he should or could move up the ladder.
“I’m always concerned,” Jackson said. “I’m not a naysayer, but I’m always a guy that is very conservative. It drives everybody in every organization and all my fighters crazy. I’m much more conservative than I am, ‘Let’s go get them.’ I like setting up parameters I know are going to win, etc., etc. So while I don’t think it’s a bad thing to be where he’s at and ready to go, I’d always like more time. That doesn’t mean I’m correct. Again, about this stuff, I can be very wrong. Do I think we are going to win this weekend? Absolutely. I think we are going to have a great time. But I’m always the guy who wants to go slower than everybody else does. … To be honest, he has the ability. He’s just incredible. I can’t say enough good things about him. I’m always the voice you don’t want to hear in the back going, ‘Well, maybe we should slow down a little bit.'”
Steveson, 26, is widely regarded as one of the most highly touted prospects in all of MMA, particularly given his wrestling credentials as an Olympic gold medalist and two-time NCAA champion. His wrestling resume is elite. While Jackson doesn’t think success is always mirrored in MMA when wrestlers make the jump, he didn’t hesitate to say he thinks Steveson will likely be an exception.
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“Without a doubt (he can be champion),” Jackson said. “Taking a gold medal at the heavyweight level is so hard to do. Unbelievable. The talent there, the who you’re going up against – good lord. Just winning an NCAA, just one title, is so hard to do. Yeah, he has the championship mentality. He’s already been there at a very high level. It’s just about learning the ins and outs of the sport, which take time, unfortunately. It would be nice if it was a 1-to-1. It takes time.
“Even great, great fighters who come from wrestling, like Daniel Cormier, one of the greatest to ever do it, he took a lot of fights early on to try to get to that. Bob Cook was a master of guiding that process. So some people take more fights. Some people take less. Josh Hokit has already had a few fights in the UFC, and he’s knocking on the door, as well, as far as the heavyweights. It really depends on the guy and their circumstances, and there are so many variables. It’s really hard to say, ‘This is definitively the right pace to take him at.'”
Steveson debuts Saturday at UFC 329 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas when he takes on Elisha Ellison (5-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) in a three-round heavyweight prelim.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: What’s Gable Steveson’s ceiling in the UFC? Greg Jackson’s ‘without a doubt’ answer
