The Driving Force Behind Gilbert Burns

An extended run in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship has taught Gilbert
Burns to expect the unexpected.

The
Kill Cliff Fight Club standout will try to move one step closer
to securing another shot at the undisputed welterweight crown when
he faces Jorge
Masvidal in the
UFC 287 co-headliner on Saturday at Miami-Dade Arena in Miami.
Approaching the nine-year anniversary of his arrival in the
promotion, Burns has compiled a 14-5 record across his 19
appearances inside the Octagon.

“I’ve amassed a lot of experience in the UFC,” Burns told
Sherdog.com. “At first, I thought my path would be shorter. I
thought I would become champion in short order. In the end, things
didn’t quite work out that way. I had great wins but also a few
losses.”

A multiple-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion, Burns touched
down in the UFC as a prized lightweight prospect in 2014 and later
repackaged himself at 170 pounds. He fought for the welterweight
crown at UFC 258, losing to Kamaru
Usman by third-round technical knockout. Burns has gone 2-1 in
three outings since, his victories over Stephen
Thompson and Neil Magny
sandwiched around a defeat to Khamzat
Chimaev.

“After moving up to welterweight, things got easier,” he said. “I
had much better performances due to not punishing myself so much
doing weight cuts. I feel my career started getting better because
of the weight class change. Today, I’m in a good place.”

Masvidal offers the kind of name recognition and visibility
opponents covet. The
American Top Team export owns high-profile victories over
Donald
Cerrone, Ben Askren
and Nate
Diaz. However, Masvidal has never looked more vulnerable, as
the 38-year-old Miami native has lost three fights in a row for the
first time in his career.

“I wanted to have this fight some time ago,” Burns said, “but since
it was taking so long to get it booked, I started losing interest.
This is my third fight against someone outside the Top 10. Despite
that, I very much want to capture a championship, and I believe a
dominant win by knockout or submission could result in another
title shot. I don’t choose my opponents. Sometimes I ask—I asked
for Colby
Covington—but you can’t always get what you want.

“Jorge is going to bring a lot of eyes to this fight, and a win is
a win,” he added. “I’m hoping to either get a title shot or at
least get to where I’m very close to one. My objective now is to
beat Masvidal, earn another title shot and become champion.”

Burns last competed at UFC 283, where he dispatched the
aforementioned Magny with an arm-triangle choke in the first round
of their Jan. 21 confrontation. He has not fought more than twice
in a calendar year since 2019—a trend he hopes to change moving
forward.

“My plans for the future are to remain active, keep fighting and
stay healthy,” Burns said. “Last year, I only had one fight, so
this year, I want to keep working. I want to get as close to the
belt as I can this year. I want to be champ. I’ll keep on fighting.
One or two more fights this year would be essential for me to get
to the title.”