Rivalries: Gilbert Burns

Skeptics are counting on Gilbert Burns.

The Sanford MMA export will attempt to slow the unbeaten Khamzat Chimaev’s rise in the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s welterweight division when the two men collide in an anticipated UFC 273 attraction on Saturday at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida. Burns has rattled off seven wins across his past eight appearances and remains universally regarded as one of the sport’s top competitors at 170 pounds. He last competed at UFC 264, where he took a unanimous decision from Stephen Thompson on July 10.

As Burns makes final preparations for his encounter with the hyped Chimaev, a look at some of the rivalries that have helped shape his career:

Dan Hooker

The former Australian Fighting Championship titleholder put away Burns with punches in the first round of their UFC 226 lightweight prelim on July 7, 2018 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. “Durinho” succumbed to blows 2:28 into Round 1, as he suffered his first setback in nearly two years. Hooker clipped the four-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion with a slashing straight right in the center of the cage, then cut off his bid for a takedown with a tight guillotine choke. The City Kickboxing standout reset himself on the feet, went to the body with a savage left hook and fired another left hook to the head. Burns hit the deck, where he was met with a closing hammerfist before referee Mark Smith stepped in to prevent any unnecessary damage.

Gunnar Nelson

Burns made the most of his opportunity as a short-notice replacement and laid claim to a unanimous decision over the longtime Renzo Gracie protégé in their three-round UFC Fight Night 160 welterweight showcase on Sept. 28, 2019 at Royal Arena in Copenhagen, Denmark. All three cageside judges struck 29-28 scorecards. A fill-in for the injured Thiago Alves, Burns kept the Icelandic grappler at bay with leg kicks, snuck in a takedown in the second round and outstruck him in a majority of their exchanges. Nelson piled up nearly five minutes of control time but proved far too passive to warrant serious consideration from the judiciary.

Demian Maia

“Durinho” bolstered his resume in stunning fashion and forced Ultimate Fighting Championship matchmakers to take note when he wiped out the 2007 Abu Dhabi Combat Club Submission Wrestling World Championships gold medalist with punches in the first round of their UFC Fight Night 170 welterweight co-main event on March 14, 2020 at Nilson Nelson Gymnasium in Brasilia, Brazil. Burns drew the curtain 2:34 into Round 1, becoming the first man to stop the Brazilian grappling savant with strikes since Nate Marquardt did the honors more than a decade earlier. He withstood two takedowns, survived a rear-naked choke attempt and escaped to his feet. As the two men drifted into open space, Burns decked his counterpart with a chopping left hook, pounced with punches and prompted the stoppage.

Tyron Woodley

Any doubts regarding Burns’ legitimacy as a contender in the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s welterweight division were alleviated when he made his intentions known in the loudest terms possible, manhandled the former titleholder across five rounds and laid claim to a unanimous decision in the UFC on ESPN 9 headliner on May 30, 2020 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Scores were 50-45, 50-44 and 50-44. Woodley once again appeared tentative and out of sorts against a next-generation competitor. Burns set the tone with a sublime first round, where he swarmed “The Chosen One” with punches, floored him with a right uppercut at close range and powered into top position. From there, the Brazilian climbed to full mount, opened a serious cut above Woodley’s left eye with an elbow strike and applied maximum pressure from the top. Burns kept his foot on the gas for the duration of the bout—even after he had built an insurmountable lead on the scorecards—and showed he was the superior fighter in all phases.

Kamaru Usman

“The Nigerian Nightmare” retained his undisputed welterweight crown with a stirring third-round technical knockout of his former Sanford MMA stablemate in the UFC 258 main event on Feb. 13, 2021 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Burns bowed out 34 seconds into Round 3, his run of six consecutive victories at an end. It was far from a typical title defense for the champion. Burns had him reeling with an overhand right in the first round and appeared to have him out of sorts. Usman, however, slowly regained his faculties and started to seize command. He relied more and more on a devastating jab from both hands and floored Burns with the punch during a dominant second round. Usman dropped the four-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion again at the start of Round 3, sent a standing-to-ground right hand crashing into his face and let fly with punches until referee Herb Dean had seen enough.

BetUS.com is offering our listeners an incredible 125% bonus on their deposit for UFC 273. Use code SHERDOG and get $2,500 in extra money to make fight night even better.