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Burns Discusses How Training History With Usman Influenced Camp

UFC 258 title challenger Gilbert Burns is applying knowledge picked up from his past training sessions with the champion, Kamaru Usman. Gilbert Burns has been confirmed as the next challenger for Kamaru Usman’s welterweight championship. Burns earned this honor by going 4-0 since entering the welterweight division, including a dominant shutout victory over former champion […]

Gilbert Burns Feared Title Shot Would Go To Khamzat Chimaev

Gilbert Burns was unsure if he’d get the next welterweight title shot. Burns is currently set to take on welterweight champion Kamaru Usman at UFC 258 on February 13 after it was recently reported again that both fighters had verbally agreed to the fight. Of course, Burns was set to face Usman back at UFC […]

Gilbert Burns was unsure if he’d get the next welterweight title shot.

Burns is currently set to take on welterweight champion Kamaru Usman at UFC 258 on February 13 after it was recently reported again that both fighters had verbally agreed to the fight.

Of course, Burns was set to face Usman back at UFC 251 in July only for a positive COVID-19 test to rule him out of the fight with less than a week to go.

The title fight was expected to be rescheduled for December at UFC 256 only for it to be off again as Usman required more time before competing.

All these delays along with the rise of Khamzat Chimaev in the welterweight division who was set to face Leon Edwards next made Burns wary about whether he would get the next title shot.

Luckily for him, that will be the case after all.

“Thank God he closed this fight,” Burns told AG Fight (via BJ Penn). “They had already sent me that date, so it was a matter of the contract getting done, but now it is official. ‘Countdown’ has already come here to my home, so it’s guaranteed to happen.

“I was training a lot and afraid this fight would slip into the hands of Khamzat (Chimaev) or something would happen. I think (this delay) was more of a UFC move, I don’t know, you’re seeing it as much with (Jorge) Masvidal or Colby (Covington). I don’t know if it was something like that either. Now it is time to continue training and we are going to win this title.”

Burns was right to be fearful as it’s very clear the UFC is high on Chimaev and the promotion has been known to skip over contenders in the past. Fortunately, the same won’t happen to Burns who is more than deserving of the shot.

“Durinho” is coming off a dominant unanimous decision win over former champion Tyron Woodley in May and is unbeaten in four since moving up to welterweight in 2019.

Do you think Burns will come out on top against Usman?

Gilbert Burns Believes Colby Covington Has Jorge Masvidal’s Number

Gilbert Burns wants to see Colby Covington vs. Jorge Masvidal next. The pair have been slated to fight for a while with UFC president Dana White recently revealing that he’s still working on making it happen. Burns is naturally interested in the matchup as he could end up facing the winner — or loser — […]

Gilbert Burns wants to see Colby Covington vs. Jorge Masvidal next.

The pair have been slated to fight for a while with UFC president Dana White recently revealing that he’s still working on making it happen.

Burns is naturally interested in the matchup as he could end up facing the winner — or loser — depending on the result of his planned welterweight title fight with Kamaru Usman at UFC 258.

And while he believes Masvidal has the better striking, Burns ultimately feels Covington has his number due to this pressure, pace and wrestling.

“Stand up, for sure Masvidal is better, but Colby Covington has that pressure, has that pace,” Burns said on his YouTube channel (via Middle Easy). “I watched a couple videos of these guys going after it in the living room when they lived together, and Colby was just taking him down multiple times.

“The last fights that he faced good grapplers, (Jorge) has lost, Kamaru (Usman) and (Demian) Maia. I think Colby has his number too.

“Colby has good pressure, good pace for that division. I don’t know, they know each other a lot…the way I kind of picture that a little bit, Colby has the advantage, Colby has his number.”

This is a certainly common opinion for most observers in the combat sports world, especially after seeing old videos of Covington and Masvidal wrestling.

That said, Masvidal has definitely improved his overall grappling and showed relatively good takedown defense against Usman in their short-notice fight at UFC 251.

Having added vicious knockouts to his game, it will certainly be interesting to see how Masvidal fares against Covington in 2021.

Do you agree with Burns?

Kamaru Usman vs. Gilbert Burns Set For UFC 258

Kamaru Usman and Gilbert Burns will finally share the Octagon with one another. Usman was supposed to defend his welterweight title against Burns at UFC 251, but the challenger tested positive for COVID-19. They were then supposed to fight at UFC 256 b…

Gilbert Burns Believes There Are Many ‘Bad Matchups’ For Jon Jones At Heavyweight

Gilbert Burns believes Jon Jones is making a mistake with his move up to heavyweight. Jones is expected to make his heavyweight debut later this year with the UFC planning on him facing the winner of the Stipe Miocic vs. Francis Ngannou rematch which is slated for March. Burns notably believes Ngannou will emerge victorious […]

Gilbert Burns believes Jon Jones is making a mistake with his move up to heavyweight.

Jones is expected to make his heavyweight debut later this year with the UFC planning on him facing the winner of the Stipe Miocic vs. Francis Ngannou rematch which is slated for March.

Burns notably believes Ngannou will emerge victorious over Miocic which would set up a highly-anticipated meeting with Jones. However, the Brazilian doesn’t seem to think Jones stands a chance against “The Predator” as he wonders how the longtime light heavyweight champion would deal with the effects of a potential knockout defeat.

“Jon Jones at heavyweight — me? I don’t like that so much,” Burns said on his YouTube channel (via Middle Easy). “When you have a guy like Francis Ngannou in the heavyweight division, I don’t know. I don’t see an easy path for Jon Jones in the heavyweight division. Or he has to fight Stipe if he Stipe beats Ngannou, Stipe is fighting Jon Jones. But I don’t think that’s going to happen. I think Ngannou is going to defeat Stipe and Ngannou will fight Jon Jones. And I don’t like that fight.

“… I don’t like the what if but what if Jon Jones goes against Francis Ngannou and he’s [Ngannou] going to knock him out badly. How about that? What is Jon Jones going to do? First, when you’re undefeated and you lose, it’s very tough. … If you’re champion, champion, undefeated, undisputed and then you lose badly, I don’t know how that’s going to affect you right here [pointing to the head]. I don’t know about Jon Jones’ future. I think he still has a couple of guys to beat at 205. My opinion — he should fight Adesanya. Stay at 205, beat Jan Blachowicz, beat Santos again, another guy.”

Even counting Ngannou aside, the UFC welterweight believes there are plenty of other bad matchups in the division for Jones.

Curtis Blaydes and Alistair Overeem being among them.

“I don’t know if it’s just me but there’s a lot of bad matchups for him,” Burns added. “Curtis Blaydes is a wrestler, good striker, hits very, very hard. Then we got Alistair Overeem, they used to train together and Overeem called him out. What does that mean? If the guy called you out and you used to train together, that’s a little confidence at least.

“Overeem, Curtis Blaydes, Francis Ngannou? I don’t know. I got to see it to believe it. But I don’t think it’s a good move for Jon Jones to go up to heavyweight as of right now.”

Of course, comments like these will only spur Jones to prove his critics wrong even more. And if the light heavyweights didn’t scare him, heavyweights like Ngannou certainly will which will undoubtedly bring out the best of Jones.

Do you agree with Burns?

Gilbert Burns Heaps Praise On ‘Very Underrated’ Conor McGregor

Ahead of his February welterweight title challenge at UFC 248, streaking Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu standout, Gilbert ‘Durinho’ Burns has had some complimentary words for UFC 257 headliner, ‘The Notorious’ Conor McGregor — praising the grappling prowess of the Straight Blast Gym striker. Burns hopes to finally stand opposite reigning division leader, Kamaru ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ Usman […]

Burns hopes to finally stand opposite reigning division leader, Kamaru ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ Usman in his first attempted title challenge under the UFC’s banner, following a pair of failed matchups with the champion in December and July last, respectively.

Since his return to welterweight back in August of 2019, Sanford MMA mainstay, Burns has won four on the trot, extending his overall undefeated to run to six-fights. The Brazilian headlined his first UFC event in May at UFC Vegas where he took home a dominant unanimous decision win and the division’s number-one contender status against former champion, Tyron ‘The Chosen One’ Woodley. The victory followed a March knockout win over compatriot, Demian Maia in Brasilia.

Slated for a February matchup with Usman, a month following McGregor’s set comeback against former opponent and interim lightweight titleholder, Dustin ‘The Diamond’ Poirier, Burns touched on the former’s grappling ability, claiming the Dubliner is “very underrated“ in that aspect of his overall skillset — pointing to McGregor’s opening-round sweep over two-time foe, Nate Diaz during their UFC 196 matchup in 2016 as a clear sign of his overlooked ability.

“He’s (Conor McGregor) good,” Burns said. “People think he’s very bad, but he’s very good. People don’t remember he swept Nate Diaz in their first fight. I think he’s very underrated. People say, ‘All you have to do is take him down.’ First of all, when the guy controls the distance like Conor (McGregor), it’s not easy to take the guy down.“

“Another thing that people don’t realise is those guys that kick a lot, they develop a lot power in their hips. So those hips are very flexible and very strong. It’s that type of flexibility and strength that is the same one that you use to defend the takedowns. The point is, Conor’s Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is not bad. People underestimate that, but he is a good grappler the way I see. For sure, he’s not a grappler. It’s not a natural thing. It’s not his natural thing, but for sure he’s put a lot of focus on that.” (H/T Middleeasy)

Burns, under Rafael Barros, is a second-degree Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, scoring eight of his fourteen career finishes via submission. An ADCC bronze medalist back in 2015 in his native Brazil, Burns has scored a whopping four world championship wins in both World and World No-Gi competition.

For McGregor, the 32-year-old was promoted to a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu brown belt following his 2014 knockout victory over the above mentioned, Poirier by longtime head coach, John Kavanagh, who is the first Irish Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, under trainer, Matt Thornton.