Kamaru Usman and Gilbert Burns fought each other hundreds of times in practice. Saturday they will really do it.
Usman defends his UFC welterweight title against Burns, his former teammate, in the UFC 258 main event in Las Vegas.
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“I know a lot about Kamaru,” Burns told ESPN. “I know exactly how he wants to fight. I know a lot about him. On the other hand, he also knows a lot about me. It’s just different. I do not care. That’s what it is. We’re I will try to get him knock out or submit. ‘
Usman and Burns have been training together in South Florida since 2012, first with the Blackzilians, then HKickboxing and finally with Sanford MMA. Usman left for Colorado last year to train under coach Trevor Wittman after the initial fight with Burns was planned for July. But Burns tested positive for COVID-19 and withdrew from the fight.
While Wittman is going to stand by Usman, Burns will be missing Henri Hooft, the longtime coach, who decided to put this one out because he also coached Usman before calling the gym.
Usman, a Nigerian, is 12-0 in the UFC – one win less than Georges St-Pierre’s record of 13 wins in the UFC welterweight. Usman (33) achieved a unanimous victory over Jorge Masvidal at UFC 251 last year.
Burns (19-3) has won six in a row, the last being a unanimous victory over Woodley in May last year. The Brazilian has been 4-0 since joining in 2019 to welterweight of lightweight. Burns, 34, is a multiple Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion with power in his hands. He is trying to become the first Brazilian to win the UFC welterweight title.
In the main cast, Maycee Barber and Alexa Grasso will meet in a battle with promising women’s flyweight. The 22-year-old Barber (8-1) is trying to bounce back from her first career loss, as well as an ACL operation. Grasso (12-3), a 27-year-old Mexican striker, wants to put together her first UFC winning streak.
Former leading middleweight candidate Kelvin Gastelum is also trying to beat a losing streak against Ian Heinisch and dominant Brazilian jiu-jitsu star Rodolfo Vieira is trying to stay unbeaten in the MMA against Anthony Hernandez.
Fighting in progress:
Catch weight (140 pounds): Andre Ewell (17-6, 4-2 UFC, +125) vs. Chris Gutierrez (15-3-2, 3-1-1 UFC, -150)
Results:
Welterweight: Gabe Green (10-3, 1-1 UFC) defeats Phil Rowe (7-3, 0-1 UFC) by unanimous decision
Green delivered some big hits along the way, but it was his lower-legged kicks that got the knockout, inflicted the damage and secured his first UFC victory.
When the distance battle was contested, the higher Rowe used his range to pick out Green. And when the fight goes to the canvas, Rowe also shows a jiu-jitsu edge that places him in dominant positions on the canvas, close to drafting a submission. But Green dropped him twice in the second round and once again at the start of round 3, all with calf kicks. This is what got the judges involved in a close battle.
Gift 🙏@GiftedGabeGreen takes his 1️⃣ UFC victory to open # UFC258. pic.twitter.com/xgKTfpk01k
– UFC (@ufc) 14 February 2021
For Green, a 27-year-old from Downey, California, the victory got him back on track. He lost his UFC debut last May and finished a six-fight winning streak.
This evening it was Rowe whose series ended. The 30-year-old man from Palm Coast, Florida, who made his UFC debut, rode a winning streak of seven fights dating back to his third pro fight.
Two judges won the battle 29-28 for Green, and the third 30-27.
– Wagenheim
Watch it on ESPN +.
More to come:
Welterweight: Kamaru Usman (c) (17-1, 12-0 UFC, -270) vs. Gilbert Burns (19-3, 12-3 UFC, +220)
Women’s Flyweight: Maycee Barber (8-1, 3-1 UFC, +105) vs. Alexa Grasso (12-3, 4-3 UFC, -125)
Middleweight: Kelvin Gastelum (16-6 1 NC, 10-6 1 NC UFC, -220) vs. Ian Heinisch (14-3, 3-2 UFC, +180)
Featherweight Men: Ricky Simon (17-3, 5-2 UFC, -240) vs. Brian Kelleher (22-11, 6-4 UFC, +200)
Middleweight: Maki Pitolo (13-7, 1-3 UFC, +145) vs. Julian Marquez (7-2, 1-1 UFC, -170)
Middleweight: Rodolfo Vieira (7-0, 2-0 UFC, -400) vs. Anthony Hernandez (7-2 1 NC, 1-2 1 NC UFC, +310)
Welterweight: Belal Muhammad (17-3, 8-3 UFC, -490) vs. Dhiego Lima (17-7, 4-5 UFC, +370)
Scatter Weight: Polyana Viana (11-4, 2-3 UFC, +125) vs. Mallory Martin (7-3, 1-1 UFC, -150)
(c) = defending champion