Gable Steveson opened up on the mentorship of UFC star Jon Jones.Jones brought Steveson into his training camp ahead of his 2024 Heavyweight title defense against Stipe Miocic, but has since continued to be coached by Jones as he himself makes inroads in MMA."My relationship with him is everything," Steveson said of Jones during an interview with "MMA Fighting" before going into how he has helped him shape his fighting style."It's kind of crazy the way I fight, he's kind of created the way how I want to fight in the future. The dude's a legend but he's also my close friend now. He's my close friend, he's my coach, he's everything in between. It's an honor to be with someone like that and for someone to guide you along the way with that kind of stature is crazy. I take everything he says, I take it and I soak it all in and I try to do the best I can to make sure he's proud and to make sure all the other coaches are proud."Jones was in Steveson's corner as he notched his record to 3-0 in February, and he went further to say it was only a matter of time before he was competing with the best in UFC."It means a lot coming from him," Steveson said of the praise. "That's my brother. He knows best. He sees me first hand. He sees what I can do. He sees my work mentality... I would believe his word but I wouldn't believe his word to the fullest extent because you've got to believe my word, also. You've got to believe in my work ethic and my work ethic is pure. So with those two combined, you can believe both of them."
Steveson continued to say that Jones doesn't get enough credit with much of what he has done in the cage overshadowed by his antics outside of fighting, maintaining that his mentorship is the best thing he could have and he is the best fighter of all time."It's a one of a kind opportunity and I'm all ears," he said. "I'm a sponge, just soaking in all the knowledge that I can... He's perfect, he's everything you want in a coach. He shows up on time. He's ready to work, he's ready to work overtime, also."He continued to dismiss any notion that Jones wouldn't be there for him, saying his ego is non-existent in their partnership and he's ready to lead him alongside Brandon Gibson and Greg Jackson."We've got a perfect squad," he added. "We're just trying to make it happen one day at a time and just have the best of best times."Alongside his MMA career, Steveson only recently signed a multi-match agreement with Eric Bischoff's Real American Freestyle Wrestling, marking a return to grappling after failed stints with WWE and the Buffalo Bills football franchise. He also fought his one and only fight with Jon Jones' Dirty Boxing in October last year, winning via first-round knockout. All three of his MMA fights have been ruled a TKO in the first round thus far.
