Gable Steveson uses Josh Hokit's wrestling defeat to Bo Nickal to suggest wrestling and MMA superiority before UFC 329
Gable Steveson went off against his teammate Josh Hokit, as their war of words continues to escalate ahead of Steveson's UFC debut.
Gable Steveson has cited Josh Hokit's amateur wrestling defeat to Bo Nickal from several years ago to suggest that he (Steveson) is a superior wrestler and MMA fighter than Hokit.
A former amateur wrestler and ex-American Football player, Hokit (10-0 MMA) is ranked No. 5 in the UFC's official Meta Rankings. He's lately been lobbying for a UFC heavyweight title shot.
Meanwhile, Steveson (3-0 MMA) is booked to make his UFC debut a few hours from now. He'll fight Elisha Ellison in a much-awaited heavyweight matchup at UFC 329 on July 11.
Both American athletes, Steveson and Hokit, train at the world-famous Jackson Wink MMA Academy. Steveson, who also holds the honor of being a heavyweight Olympic gold medalist in freestyle wrestling, is viewed by many as one of the top prospects in MMA today.
Gable Steveson sounds off on Josh Hokit, recounts Hokit's wrestling loss to Bo Nickal
Gable Steveson, Josh Hokit, and current UFC middleweight contender Bo Nickal are known to have cut their teeth in the challenging amateur wrestling circuit in their native United States of America.
Hokit notably suffered a first-period pinfall defeat at the hands of Nickal in their 197-pound amateur wrestling matchup at the NCAA Wrestling Championships back in 2019.
Well, during a recent conversation with Jon-Bernard Kairouz, Gable Steveson was asked for his thoughts on his Jackson Wink MMA Academy teammate Josh Hokit.
In regard to Hokit's wrestling background, Steveson opined that "The Incredible Hok" is usually promoted as an ex-NFL player, an American Football veteran. He, as such, questioned whether Hokit is truly a wrestler.
Also, Steveson suggested that Hokit never crossed paths with him or reached his level during their amateur wrestling days, adding that he never felt the latter would be a challenging opponent. He stated, "I think my thoughts on his wrestling is I've never seen him in a bracket that I was in."
Moreover, Steveson cited Josh Hokit's wrestling defeat to Bo Nickal to seemingly assert his own superiority over Hokit in a potential wrestling or MMA fight. He said:
"And you gotta think about it. Because if Bo Nickal can go out there and pin you -- Bo Nickal. You think Bo Nickal can pin me?" He added, "Bo Nickal cannot pin me. You know what I would do to Bo Nickal in a wrestling match? I would beat Bo Nickal 10-0 in under a minute. That easy."
The 28-year-old opined that Hokit is a good "salesman" and does a great job at attracting certain audiences, especially a younger demographic on social media. However, he doesn't feel they're on the same level in wrestling or MMA.
Steveson explained, "I'm a fan of Josh Hokit. He's got great words. He's got fantastic fights. He's got great showings. But when you mention wrestling, he's not on the same level as me. And when you mention fighting, it'll be the same thing."
UFC newcomer Gable Steveson endorses light heavyweight move for Josh Hokit
Intriguingly, the apparent feud between Gable Steveson and Josh Hokit has gradually escalated over the past few weeks. It's piqued fan interest from several quarters, given that they're training partners at one of the most prestigious MMA gyms in the world.
On one hand, Hokit recently appeared to downplay Steveson's potential in the heavyweight division, insinuating that their coach Greg Jackson was hyping up the Olympian a tad too much.
On the other hand, Steveson has lately made public assertions that he feels Hokit should move down to the light heavyweight division and try to find success there rather than stay at heavyweight.
During his talk with Jon-Bernard Kairouz, Steveson was asked whether he thinks a fight between him and Josh Hokit would eventually come to fruition at heavyweight. He replied:
"If it is. But I'm so excited for Josh Hokit to move down to 205 (pounds). I'm so excited for him to go to 205, and have a great time at 205, and achieve everything he can at 205."
He added, "Because if he stays at heavyweight, I think there's gonna come a time when someone like myself or someone else would disrupt him before that. So I really believe that Josh Hokit should go to 205."
Watch Gable Steveson discuss his potential fight against Josh Hokit and more below:
Gable Steveson didn’t hold back… 😳
— Jon-Bernard Kairouz (@jonbernardk) July 11, 2026
Ahead of his UFC debut, we asked Gable about:
🔥 Josh Hokit
👀 Jon Jones nearly catching him with a knee
💥 His heavyweight ambitions
🏆 Who he’s targeting in the UFC
Who should Gable fight first? 👇 pic.twitter.com/r7qqwAgHS5
