Олимпын аварга Гэйбл Стивсон UFC-д хоёр дахь удаагаа тулалдахдаа Шон Шарафд хүнд цохилтоор ялагдсаны дараа түүний бэлтгэл сургуулилт болон хүрээлэл шүүмжлэлд өртлөө.
UFC-ийн тулаанч асан Мэтт Браун 26 настай Стивсоны ирээдүйд итгэлтэй байгаа ч түүнийг удирдаж буй баг, тухайлбал Жон Жонс оновчтой зөвлөгч биш гэж үзэж байна. Стивсон тулааны дараа өрсөлдөгчдөө хүндэтгэл үзүүлэлгүйгээр октагоныг шууд орхисон нь мэргэжлийн бус үйлдэл болсныг Браун онцолжээ. Жон Жонс түүнийг рингнээс хурдан гаргах шийдвэрийг өөрөө гаргаснаа хүлээн зөвшөөрсөн ч энэ нь тулаанчийн хувьд буруу үлгэр дуурайл болсон гэж үзэж байна.
Стивсон 12 секундын дотор нокаут болсон нь түүний UFC дэх карьерын хувьд том сургамж боллоо. Брауны хэлснээр, хэрэв Стивсон үнэхээр аварга болох хүсэл тэмүүлэлтэй бол зөвхөн бэлтгэл сургуулилтаа төдийгүй өөрийг нь чиглүүлж буй хүмүүсээ эргэн харах шаардлагатай байна. Жон Жонс, Грег Жексон нарын баг түүнийг дэмжихээс илүүтэйгээр зөвхөн тал зассан үйлдэл гаргасан нь тулаанчийн хөгжилд сөрөг нөлөөтэй гэж үзжээ.
Хэдийгээр тулааны долоо хоног Стивсоны хувьд бүтэлгүй өнгөрсөн ч тэрээр өндөр ур чадвартай тамирчин хэвээрээ гэдгийг Браун онцолсон юм. Хэрэв Стивсон зөв хандлага, зөв дасгалжуулагчтай болбол ирээдүйд хүнд жингийн шилдэг тулаанч болох бүрэн боломжтой хэмээн дүгнэв.
Дэлгэрэнгүй эх сурвалжийг харах
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LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 19: Gable Steveson prepares to face Sean Sharaf in a heavyweight fight during the UFC 331 event at Crypto.com Arena on September 19, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)
Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson suffered a devastating loss on Saturday when he was brutally knocked out by Sean Sharaf in just his second appearance in the UFC.
The fight lasted just 12 seconds and the Los Angeles crowd in attendance effectively cheered at Steveson’s demise. Following the knockout, Steveson got back to his feet and immediately left the octagon without congratulating his opponent or waiting for Bruce Buffer to at least read the decision. That decision didn’t make Steveson look very goods as most fighters see that moment as a chance to show some humility while offering some respect to their opponent.
On Monday, UFC legend Jon Jones took responsibility for ushering Steveson out of the cage so quickly and retired UFC welterweight Matt Brown believes the entire situation was handled poorly, but it doesn’t close the book on Steveson’s potential as a future UFC champion.
“I’m not just going to concede I was wrong,” Brown said on the latest episode of The Fighter vs. The Writer. “He got caught and he got knocked out. That’s not the end of it. George St-Pierre got knocked out. [Demetrious Johnson lost], everybody lost. Don’t act like this isn’t MMA yet. But the whole week, it brought up a lot of questions about Gable.
“To me as an outsider looking in … going to the arena with Jon Jones, driving down Hollywood Boulevard in a Mercedes or Rolls Royce or whatever it was. Kind of expecting to win. A little bit cocky — it’s OK to be a little bit cocky but it really felt like … it doesn’t feel like Jon Jones is the right guy to be coaching him and to be guiding him through this shit. His responses to a lot of the negativity coming his way were absolutely terrible. Worded terribly, spoken terribly.”
While Steveson’s night ended in just about the world way possible, Brown believes that the 26-year-old phenom still has more than enough ability to turn things around and become a potential superstar for the UFC.
Obviously getting knocked out in 12 seconds is anything but ideal but Brown knows with the right motivation that Steveson can bounce back.
Perhaps the biggest change that Steveson needs to make before coming back for his next fight is really examining the people surrounding him and that includes Jones.
“If Gable has the hunger, the motivation to really do this — he was in WWE and then NFL so is MMA just another shot? Is he just throwing darts at the board?” Brown said. “Maybe he quits after this. But if he really has the hunger and motivation, I’m still on the same train. He’s going to smash everybody, and one day, he’ll probably rematch Sean Sharaf and he’ll smash him, too.
“I think he’s unstoppable if he has the right hunger and motivation and then I have to question the coaching. He’s got to have the right coaching. Jon Jones trying to teach him to be Jon Jones is not the way.”
Of course, Steveson isn’t the first person to call on Jones for help, and he won’t be the last, but Brown knows there are other options out there that could serve as a better fit as he starts his MMA career.
“Jon Jones, Greg Jackson and Mike Winkeljohn, they hugged him on the way out,” Brown said. “I saw a little video clip of that. They should have been the ones to tell him go back in [the octagon], be a man about it. This is just another layer of questioning who’s around him and what are they doing with him? Are the coaching him or just pandering to him?”
Given time, the right coaches and the best possible training, Brown still views Steveson as the future of the heavyweight division. But more than anything, Brown says it all comes down to Steveson’s attitude and badly he wants to prove he’s the best in the world.
“If he wants this shit, and he’s hungry to be champion, he’s f*cking y’all up,” Brown said. “He has that athletic ability. I don’t care what you say about. Hopefully, they take this as a lesson [for the whole week]. PR wise, personality wise, marketing wise, and fight wise. Because this fight week was a disaster for Gable Steveson.”
