‘That is a real thing’… Sean Sharaf claims two UFC legends helped him beat Gable Steveson even before fight

Sean Sharaf has now revealed that he adopted the blueprint of two MMA legends before his stunning upset over Gable Steveson at UFC 331 last Saturday.

Gable Steveson stepped back into the octagon for UFC 331 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles and was on a four-fight winning streak in his fledgling MMA career.

Sean Sharaf, on the other hand, had lost his first two UFC fights against Junior Tafa and Steven Asplund and was the massive underdog against Steveson last weekend.

However, the 33-year-old American heavyweight came out on top after only 12 seconds, as Sharaf knocked the 26-year-old out with a flurry of punches.

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The MMA world was left reeling after Gable Steveson, who was one of the UFC’s most-exciting heavyweight prospects, suffered the first major setback in his career.

Sean Sharaf, on the other hand, is on cloud nine after he chalked up his first win in Dana White’s promotion — and has now broken down his approach to fighting Steveson.

During the pre-fight press conference for UFC 331, Sharaf did not shy away from stoking the flames around Steveson over his opponent’s checkered history.

Speaking on Weighing In, Sharaf said that he used techniques deployed by the likes of Jon Jones and Conor McGregor to rattle Steveson outside of the octagon.

“Another part is psychological warfare,” he said.

“I’ve studied Jon Jones since…, and you saw Jose Aldo and Conor McGregor.”

Jon Jones was in the corner of Gable Steveson at UFC 331 and the 39-year-old UFC legend was stunned by his heavyweight protege’s shock defeat in Los Angeles.

Sharaf doubled down on his psychological warfare claim and stressed the importance of unsettling the once-undefeated Steveson before his UFC 331 win.

“That is a real thing,” he added.

“You say something before the fight, and if it irks somebody the wrong way, they’re not gonna be thinking as level-headed as they would. That’s why that happened.”

Jones has since spoken out about Steveson after the former UFC heavyweight champion made the call to take him backstage before the result was delivered.