Gable Steveson lists next MMA fight for February as UFC pursuit continues

ballervisions 2026年1月20日

If 2026 is going to be the year Gable Steveson arrives in the UFC, he’s wasting no time. Steveson, an Olympic wrestling champion who is widely regarded as MMA’s heavyweight champion, will return to face Hugo Lezama on February 19 at Mexico Fight League 3 at the ShowCenter in Monterrey, Mexico.

Steveson (2-0 MMA) finished 2025 going wild in pursuit of his UFC dreams, winning three knockouts in as many months in all fights after working full-time in a professional MMA career. He started in September with a first-round stoppage of Braden Petersen under the LFA banner, moved on to Mike Perry’s Dirty Boxing promotion for another impressive 15-second knockout of Billy Swanson in October, and then closed out the year with a 24-second knockout of Kevin Hein on November 21 by Anthony Pettis.

Lelama (11-3 MMA) is a 37-year-old veteran with nine wins over 11 professional years. He has won four of his past six fights, most recently losing a decision to Shamil Ismailov in a modified rules fight this past December.

Just five months into his new career, Steveson, 25, has already been unanimously hailed as the No. 1 heavyweight prospect in MMA. Along with being a two-time NCAA Division I national champion and two-time Dan Hodge Trophy winner – the award given annually to the top freestyle wrestler – Steveson is best known for his run at the 2020 Olympic Games, where he stunned the world stage at just 21 years old to become the youngest freestyle wrestler to ever win gold in his division.

Steveson also had brief stints with the NFL’s Buffalo Bills and WWE before a full transition to MMA in 2025, where he benefited from the training of UFC legend Jon Jones.

Steveson told Uncrown in November that he spoke with UFC fighter Mick Maynard following his quick win over Swanson at Dirty Boxing 4, about which Maynard was to testify, and that their dialogue was “healthy.” Steveson said in the same interview that he’s taking things slow early in his MMA career and isn’t putting a specific number on the amount of fight experience he hopes to gain on the circuit before signing with a major promotion like the UFC.

“Whenever I feel confident enough,” Steveson said of jumping to the next level of MMA. “I feel confident right now. But whenever I feel like we’re in that moment, that’s Jon [Jones] he looks me in the face and says, ‘Hey, now’s the time to take that next step’ – if he says it, we’ll be ready and take it from there. But man, I’m fully confident now that I can get into a big center and make waves. But I’m not at that time, and I don’t like to talk too much in front – I consider myself something special.

“That’s right [Jones’] call, but finally it’s my phone again. We are very open about what he thinks is best, but he also listens to a lot of things I say. He’s also a really big, ‘If you want to go ahead and do it, let’s do it.’ So I think that’s where we are with our relationship, and you’re going to call me the best. Wisely, I think you’ll know – and I’ll know – when I’m ready.”

Steveson also commented on Uncrown that making his UFC debut on the White House card scheduled for June 2026 alongside Jones would be his “perfect world”.

UFC CEO Dana White confirmed in December that Steveson is “on the radar, big time” of the UFC and that the promotion is “very interested” in acquiring his services once he gets enough experience.

For Steveson, that tour continues on February 19 in Mexico.