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The best heavyweight prospect on the planet wants to debut at the UFC White House card. Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson hopes to parlay his upcoming fight into a shot in the sport’s top promotion.

Steveson (2-0) fights 11-year veteran Hugo Lezama (11-3) on Feb. 19 in Mexico. Steveson says he’s in touch with the UFC and believes a big knockout could propel him to the next level. Ideally, the 2020 Olympic gold medalist in freestyle wrestling wants to debut at the UFC White House card set for June 14.

“We’ve been in a lot of contact [with the UFC],” Steveson told ESPN. “Most definitely, I’ll call [for the White House]. I think it’s rightfully so, especially if a big knockout happens next Thursday. It would be my fourth one: three in MMA and one in boxing.”

Steveson is currently training with former two-division UFC champion Jon Jones, whom many deem the all-time best. Jones once predicted that Steveson would be a UFC heavyweight champion by early 2027. Steveson, who isn’t even signed by the promotion, agrees that he’ll be champion roughly this time next year.

“Yeah, I believe it,” Steveson mentioned. “I’ve got full confidence in myself. With a guy like Jon, I feel like my confidence goes through the roof, and the best thing about it is that he sees me firsthand, training with him and hitting the pads, going through all the motions. 

“His word is gold with that. If it’s not next year, it’ll be soon after that. It just depends on how the cards fall.”

Steveson won two NCAA Division I national wrestling championships with the University of Minnesota. He embarked on an unsuccessful professional wrestling career with the WWE before signing with the Buffalo Bills in 2024. The Bills released Steveson three months after signing him. He subsequently started his MMA journey, which has thus far been a success.