UFC welterweight contender Gilbert Burns thinks his former teammate Kamaru Usman is the greatest to ever do it.
Burns and Usman fought earlier this year at UFC 258, with Usman earning the third-round TKO finish. Burns got off to a blistering start against Usman in the opening minutes of the fight and appeared to have him hurt but gassed himself out and Usman capitalized.
Burns and Usman trained together at Sanford MMA down in south Florida before the welterweight title matchup was set. Usman then moved to train with coach Trevor Wittman and Justin Gaethje at ONX Sports in Colorado.
During a recent interview with MMA Fighting’s podcast Trocacao Franca, Burns explained why he thinks Usman gets the nod as the greatest welterweight of all-time over Georges St-Pierre.
“St-Pierre took people down and did ground and pound, it wasn’t such convincing victory sometimes, and Kamaru is winning way more convincingly,” Burns said. “He’s already the best in my opinion, but I think he’s still missing more title defenses to end the conversation.”
“I remember landing some hard shots on Kamaru, really hard ones, feeling my hand landing flush on his head, and he kept going,” Burns continued. “I remember one head kick I landed flush, I had a bump on my shin afterward, and he kept going. I think his striking is superior to St-Pierre’s. Kamaru is on another level in wrestling, too. I think that both in their prime, I’d bet on Kamaru.”
Gilbert Burns Could Be On The Verge Of Another Title Shot
Burns rebounded nicely from his earlier loss to Usman with a unanimous decision win over Stephen Thompson at UFC 264. He’s currently listed as the second-ranked UFC welterweight contender behind Colby Covington.
Burns has recently called for a fight with rising contender Khamzat Chimaev, although there’s no word on whether or not negotiations are moving forward. Usman earned a unanimous decision win over Colby Covington at UFC 268 and will more than likely face Leon Edwards for his next defense.
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