Gable Steveson Just Had One of the Worst Weeks in UFC History
On Saturday, Steveson made his sophomore UFC appearance, fighting Sean Sharaf on the main card of UFC 331. Steveson is one of the most highly touted prospects to ever enter MMA, but the Olympic gold medalist had a tumultuous fight week as he was relentlessly booed by fans and mocked by Sharaf for past sexual assault allegations made against him. Steveson handled the attacks by dismissing Sharaf as an opponent, only to then get brutally knocked out in 12 seconds and flee the scene afterward, not even being willing to stand in the cage as Sharaf was officially announced the winner.
The backlash to Steveson's catastrophic performance and reaction was immediate, and though there were better and more significant fights at UFC 331, the talk of the MMA world is on Steveson right now.
Has Any UFC Fighter Ever Had a Worse Week Than Gable Steveson?
This was as bad as it gets all the way around, and Steveson now has such a hole to dig himself out of that it is fair to wonder if he can.
Steveson was clearly not mentally ready for the UFC and MMA fan base. He not only looked uncomfortable all week while Sharaf went there with him, but his comebacks on the mic left everyone else uncomfortable. Dislike transitioned to pure disdain. But as the saying goes, winning solves everything.
Then the bell rang, and 12 seconds later, Steveson was unconscious. A few minutes after that, he headed to the back, smirking away at the loudly booing crowd.
The comparison to Jose Aldo's downfall at the hands of Conor McGregor is unavoidable, though Aldo's loss came against a superstar and permanently changed the landscape of MMA. The only other fighter who comes close is Ronda Rousey before her fight with Amanda Nunes. But the difference between Rousey and Steveson is that Rousey lost to the greatest female fighter of all time. Steveson lost to Sean Sharaf.
Every fighter loses, but who you lose to and how matters. This is as bad a loss as a fighter can have, and his reaction was somehow even worse. Even if Steveson can come back from this physically, how can he ever regain face with the fan base? For the rest of his career, people are going to chant "12 seconds" at him.
Steveson is still talented, and heavyweight is still thin, so it would be premature to say he cannot come back and do big things in the sport. But the path forward is daunting.
Is Joshua Van the Next Great UFC Champion?
Van was impressive on Saturday, and his fifth-round performance was special.
In a championship fight where he had been pushed hard, in the fifth round, Van did everything you ever want a champion to do. He did not go out there to jab and move and squeak out a win or try to coast to a decision. He went out there to make a statement.
After 20 minutes of fighting at an insane pace, Van came out and put together the most dominant round of the fight, wailing on Pantoja and even trying to submit him. That is rare stuff from a young champion, and this is now the second fight in a row he has done it.
Van does not have an easy path ahead of him, with the hard-hitting Manel Kape likely next and a division that is bristling with talent. There are legends to build his name off of in Brandon Moreno and Kyoji Horiguchi, fellow wunderkinds like Rei Tsuruya, and even a chance to get Charles Johnson back would be intriguing.
The fun has just begun.
Arman Tsarukyan Is Undeniable Now, Right?
Tsarukyan has been undeniable since he made weight as the backup fighter for Islam Makhachev vs. Dustin Poirier. He cemented it with the destruction of Dan Hooker, and he triple-stamped the double stamp with a knockout-of-the-year contender against Mauricio Ruffy.
This will not be an easy fight to book. Gaethje has decisions to make as to whether or not he wants to return. That is totally fine; he has earned the right to do whatever he wants. But Tsarukyan is the biggest fight he can realistically have right now. This is bigger than a Topuria rematch right now, or anything else that could be on the table. If Gaethje is coming back, it should only be to fight Tsarukyan. But if Gaethje wants to ride off into the sunset after the greatest victory in UFC history, he deserves to do so.
There are no guarantees in combat sports, especially in the UFC, but the matchmakers should end up with unanimous agreement that Gaethje vs. Tsarukyan is next. Fans deserve to see that fight properly announced, and Tsarukyan acknowledged as the true No. 1 contender.
Tsarukyan has been the best lightweight on Earth for several years but has not fought for the title through a combination of UFC business decisions and his own failures. Eventually, he decided he had had enough and became undeniable through a series of huge wins.
Now the obvious answer is that Gaethje retires and Tsarukyan fights for the vacant title.
