WATCH: Former WWE star Gable Steveson dominates in his first home match since 2022 as he leads Gophers to historic win

Former WWE star Gable Steveson was at his relentless best in his first home match after returning to Minnesota Wrestling. The Tokyo Olympic champion beat North Dakota state's Taye Ghadiali for his 54th consecutive college victory.

Steveson returned to Gophers Wrestling after stints in WWE and NFL, which saw him out of action for the wrestling program for over two years. The two-time heavyweight NCAA champion had an extra year of eligibility left and made his season debut on Friday against North Dakota State.

He secured a dominant technical fall victory during Gopher's 39-0 win against North Dakota State and has now triumphed on his first home match since his return as well. Despite having last wrestled at home in February 2022, Steveson was dominant in his Big Ten bout against Ghadiali, beating him 20-4 with a technical fall.

Steveson constantly attacked the legs of Ghadiali and scored two takedowns in the opening round to lead 6-1. The 24-year-old continued to find angles and attack in the following rounds, taking down Ghadiali to win his 54th consecutive collegiate bout.

Steveson received a warm welcome from the Gophers fans, more so after leading them to a 44-0 victory over Campbell. It marked the second consecutive shutout victory for the Gophers since December 1997 and they will look to extend the streak to three when they take on South Dakota State on Sunday, December 1.

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"Jon Jones definitely lit a fire under me" - Gable Steveson teases a move to UFC in future

Buffalo Bills Mandatory Minicamp - Gable Steveson in action before being dropped (Source: Getty)

Before his return to Gophers Wrestling, Gable Steveson trained with UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones ahead of the latter's fight against Stipe Miocic at UFC 309. Training and sparring with Jones has seemingly motivated Steveson to pursue a career in MMA. He said in an interview with The Ariel Helwani Show.

"I’ve dipped and dabbed in MMA for a while now. After being in that camp with Jon Jones, that definitely put a major spark in me to go out there and do MMA. Not sure the promotion yet, but Jon definitely lit a fire under me...With the wrestling, with the boxing work, with the jiu-jitsu, I feel like I could be very good really quick'' [27:54]

Jones has spoken highly of Steveson's prospects in MMA as well, even predicting he could become a future heavyweight champion.