Steveson Wants Training Sessions With Cormier

Gable Steveson wants to train with Daniel Cormier even if he is mentored by Jon Jones.

Steveson was asked about his relationship with Jones, who has been mentoring the Olympic gold medalist since he made the jump from freestyle wrestling to MMA. The answer was straightforward — Jones is his guy, has been from the start, and that is not changing.

"I would love to get some one-on-one training with DC. I mean, I've always told Jon that DC is a fantastic fighter, and he's one of my top two fighters of all time. I would enjoy a few classes with DC to learn how he processed fighting, how he managed from wrestling to come to fighting. I would love that. It would be an honor. But I've been with Jon my whole short career right now, and I plan on keeping Jon forever. But I would love to have DC give me a few lessons,” Steveson

Cormier made exactly the transition Steveson is now attempting and did it well enough to become a two-division UFC champion. His path from Olympic wrestler to champion at both heavyweight and light heavyweight is perhaps the most instructive template available for what Steveson is trying to build.

Jones beat Cormier by unanimous decision at UFC 182, then knocked him out with a head kick in their 2017 rematch at UFC 214 — a result that was subsequently overturned after Jones failed a drug test.

Going into UFC 329, Steveson is 3-0 in sanctioned MMA competition, with a fourth win — a 15-second knockout of Billy Swanson for Dirty Boxing Championship — if you include non-UFC appearances. The longer career, and the question of how high his ceiling actually is, will take years to answer.