Valter Walker Reflects on Gable Steveson’s Mental Pressure Ahead of UFC 331

Gable Steveson got knocked out in a matter of 12 seconds by Sean Sharaf. While this became one of the biggest upsets in UFC history, critics immediately started to jump to conclusions about what led to such a downfall. However, while there are many speculations, Valter Walker recently tried to shed light on the troubled mental state of the Olympic gold medalist. 

Speaking on what caused Steveson’s mental troubles, Walker said, “People were really getting on him online. I think he lost maybe half a million followers on Instagram. And I think that shit can get into your head before a fight. You know how much pressure there is in the UFC. I think people really f*cked with him mentally. He went into the cage, but mentally, he wasn’t there."

Ahead of the fight, the American fighter was constantly booed by the crowd. Additionally, Sharaf, too, called him a “ra**st” referencing allegations tracing back to 2019. Elaborating on the impact, Walker pointed out that Steveson lost almost half a million followers on social media ahead of the fight. 

Henry Cejudo provides One-Year Comeback Plan for Gable Steveson

Steveson’s loss comes as a shocker. Pegging back his UFC career significantly, it is now time for the Olympic gold medalist to go back to the drawing board and assess the situation. Recently, shedding light on what to do, ‘Triple C’ tried to provide some assistance. 

Cejudo said, “To me, I'm not surprised (Steveson got knocked out) and I hate to say this, bro. You cannot hurry up in this game, dude, and I hope Bo Nickal can also see this s— too. Like man, you've got to be able to respect the game, focus on MMA and just do that.mMy next thing for Gable Steveson and I'm gonna tell you right now, he needs to take a whole f— year and get better defensively."

As suggestions keep flooding in, fans will be eager to find out what’s next for Steveson.