Golden Gopher heavyweight Gable Steveson will return to the mat on Thursday, September 17, as part of Beat the Streets of New York City’s annual fundraising event. Steveson will square off against Wisconsin All-American Trent Hillger.
How excited are you to finally have your first official match since last year’s B1G tournament?
Gable: I’m excited, especially having it be Beat the Streets in New York City. In my opinion, Beat the Streets is the pinnacle of freestyle wrestling, especially with it being invite-only. I’ve wanted to wrestle in that event since I was a little kid, so it’s cool to finally get that opportunity and go do it.
How different will it be for you knowing that this is going to be a purely individual event for you, with no teammates competing, traveling, or doing the meet-day routine with you?
Gable: I think it’s cool. At the end of the day, wrestling is an individual sport, even if I have that Gopher team behind me, so it’s going to feel the same to me. I think it will be cool just having an individual appearance in front of the fans, and at the end of the day it is just me versus my opponent and that’s just how I think.
Is there any difference in your training transitioning between folkstyle and freestyle events like you have been for the past year or so?
Gable: Not really, I think it’s all the same. I think you can ask any wrestler and they’ll tell you that. I don’t change the way I train, because at the end of the day, the work is the work, and I just need to get the job done.
What is your overall mindset going into Beat the Streets?
Gable: It’s just a business trip for me. I’m focused on creating that name for myself, and putting points on the board so that people will recognize me as a wrestler. If I put points on the board, I’ll win the match.
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