Gilbert Burns vs. Michael Morales has shifted events yet again and will now serve as a headliner.
[autotag]Gilbert Burns[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Michael Morales[/autotag] has shifted events yet again and will now serve as a headliner.
Burns was slated to take on Morales in Saturday’s UFC 314 card in Miami before moving to UFC 315 on May 10 in Montreal. Now the pair have been rebooked for a week later, but this time to main event UFC Fight Night 256 May 17 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas (ESPN+).
A person with knowledge of the situation confirmed the news to MMA Junkie after an initial report from UFC Espanol’s Jacque Enriquez on Friday, and the UFC made a formal announcement Saturday during the UFC 314 main card broadcast.
Former title challenger Burns (22-8 MMA, 15-8 UFC) will look to snap a three-fight losing skid, where he most recently lost a unanimous decision to Sean Brady in the UFC Fight Night 242 headliner this past September. “Durinho” hasn’t won a fight since defeating Jorge Masvidal at UFC 287 in April 2023.
Undefeated Morales (17-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC) has an opportunity to enter the upper echelon of the welterweight after finishing three of his first five UFC fights. He is coming off a first-round, Performance of the Night TKO of Neil Magny at UFC on ESPN 62.
The latest UFC Fight Night 256 lineup now includes:
Gilbert Burns sees Tatiana Suarez overwhelming Zhang Weili with her wrestling at UFC 312.
[autotag]Gilbert Burns[/autotag] sees [autotag]Tatiana Suarez[/autotag] overwhelming [autotag]Zhang Weili[/autotag] with her wrestling at UFC 312.
Suarez (11-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) challenges strawweight champion Weili (25-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) in Saturday’s co-main event at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN2, ESPN+).
Suarez was an Olympic wrestling hopeful, who had her dreams crushed after being diagnosed with thyroid cancer. Burns respects her journey of overcoming adversity, and thinks she’ll dethrone Weili decisively to become the UFC’s 15th undefeated, undisputed titleholder.
“I’m a huge fan of both, especially Tatiana Suarez,” Burns said on his YouTube channel. “She had cancer, she beat cancer, she had so many injuries, but now she’s up on her feet, she’s fighting for the title. I think she’s going ‘Khabib’ Zhang Weili. I think she’s going to take her down and going to keep taking her down and ground-and-pound and ground-and-pound.
“Maybe a submission, I don’t think so. But I think Tatiana Suarez is going to be, ‘And New’ by decision, beating Zhang Weili. Don’t count Zhang Weili out, she’s still going to have her moments. I think she might hurt Tatiana a little bit, but Tatiana knows her moment. She’s going to take her down and she’s going to Khabib and win by dominant decision. Tatiana Suarez, ‘And New.'”
Oddsmakers suggest undefeated Suarez will become the new UFC strawweight champion, with many betting sites pegging her as a slight favorite.
Gilbert Burns is aware that a potential fight with Michael Morales won’t be easy.
[autotag]Gilbert Burns[/autotag] is aware that a potential fight with [autotag]Michael Morales[/autotag] won’t be easy.
Per Ag Fight, Burns (22-8 MMA, 15-8 UFC) is expected to face Morales (17-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC) in a welterweight bout April 12 at UFC 314 in Miami.
Burns recently addressed the possible matchup with the unbeaten rising contender.
“I think the guy’s very good,” Burns said of Morales on his “Show Me The Money” podcast. “High-level. He’s 17-0 18-0, maybe? Crazy finishes. He’s very tough, very good, very athletic. Looks very athletic.
“I started watching his fights a little bit just in case. The fight’s not officially a done deal, but I think it’s going to play (out). I think it’s a tough fight for me. Tough fight for him as well, I think, but as (Renato) ‘Money’ Moicano says, ‘I cannot afford to lose, bro.'”
Former title challenger Burns has his back against the wall having lost three straight for the first time in his career. His losses came to current UFC welterweight champion Belal Muhammad, and top contenders Jack Della Maddalena and Sean Brady.
What bothers Burns the most isn’t necessarily the skid, but his most recent performance against Brady this past September in the UFC Fight Night 242 main event.
“It’s been three already,” Burns said. “The injury against Belal, then the knockout against JDM, then the last one for me, which was a hard one to swallow. I put a crazy amount of work, and I couldn’t show anything. I had a bad weight cut. No excuses. Shout out to Sean Brady – he did great.
“No excuse: The guy beat me, but I couldn’t perform the way I wanted. So now, I’m going to do everything in my power to perform. I don’t care. I want to show up in that fight. I’m not even looking at the three losses, I just want to show up.”
John McCarthy can see that Colby Covington has “gotten worse” as a fighter.
John McCarthy advises [autotag]Colby Covington[/autotag] against fighting [autotag]Gilbert Burns[/autotag].
Covington (17-5 MMA, 12-5 UFC) lost his second consecutive fight when he suffered a third-round doctor stoppage TKO to Joaquin Buckley in the UFC on ESPN 63 headliner earlier this month at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla. McCarthy shuts down the narrative that Covington was rallying before the doctor intervened to stop the fight due to the nasty gash on his eyelid.
“There was a couple things in that fight, watching it,” McCarthy said on his “Weighing-In” podcast. “First off, Colby took an ass whooping. He absolutely showed he’s a tough human being, he’s a tough man, he doesn’t f*cking whine during the fight. He’s going after it, he’s trying, but you know, he was cut in multiple spots.
“He was cut across the brow, he was cut inside the actual start of the eyelid, which is what caused them (doctors) concern. Chael can say what he wants to. He wasn’t coming close to winning that fight. He wasn’t coming back. He was getting the sh*t beat out him. The fight was just going to continue on in the direction it was.”
Covington proceeded to call out Burns (22-8 MMA, 15-8 UFC) after the fight. Although Burns is also on a losing skid, McCarthy thinks it’s a bad matchup for Covington.
“You’ve got to be honest. There was a difference that has happened with Colby in that sometimes guys let their career slide by while they’re doing all the shucking, jiving, talking, and stuff, and it’s great, but you’re not fighting. And he hasn’t gotten better,” McCarthy said. “He has gotten worse. I’m just going to be as honest as I can. He has slowed down. He’s not as fast.
“His entries when he tries for a takedown are not as deep. He doesn’t get where he used to get. All of those things are going to work against him in anybody he fights. And if he fights Gilbert, does he want to take Gilbert down? It’s not an easy position to be. I’m not saying he can’t get away with possibly not getting submitted, but he is definitely putting himself into the crock pot because it’s hot. On the feet, Gilbert has more power, and I think he has more speed.”
Maybe Chael Sonnen is not such a “Bad Guy” after all.
[autotag]Chael Sonnen[/autotag] learned the hard way not to mess with [autotag]Gilbert Burns[/autotag].
After Sonnen suggested that Burns was retired on a recent episode of “Good Guy/Bad Guy” with Daniel Cormier, Burns retaliated by leaking his phone number on X in a later deleted post. However, Sonnen took being doxxed in stride as he decided to host a Q&A with fans once an array of calls came his way.
Maybe he’s not such a “Bad Guy” after all.
Check out Sonnen’s Q&A with fans in the video below:
History repeats itself!
Burns gave Sonnen a taste of his own medicine here, as Sonnen once posted Chad Mendes’ number on social media after Mendes failed to respond to his text messages in the lead-up to his interim featherweight title fight vs. Conor McGregor at UFC 189.
“I tell Daniel, I said, ‘Hey, I love the idea of Gilbert. I know he’s still in the rankings, but he’s left the pool, Gilbert Burns retired,'” Sonnen said. “‘He officially retired after his last fight’. And, guys, to this moment in time I still think I’m right. No, I’m clearly not right.
“Somewhere that got misprogrammed in my head, but I can still pause and think back. I remember Gilbert saying this. So Gilbert goes on Twitter and he plays the clip, and he says that is so disrespectful. ‘Hey, Chael, I’d like to talk to you about this. Is your phone number still,’ and he posts my phone number.”
Brad Tate has become one of the most recognizable UFC cutmen through humor, his online presence and his “rivalry” with Gilbert Burns.
LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Brad Tate[/autotag] considers himself blessed.
“I’ve always said, ‘If you find something you love, you’ll never work another day in your life, and that’s the truth,'” Tate recently told MMA Junkie on the 16th Annual Fighters Only World MMA Awards red carpet. “I don’t work. I’m having a blast. I get to hang out with my friends who have become family. You guys have celebrated me and embraced me and have let me be a goofball in the world. You laugh at me, and I love it.”
One of the most recognizable faces in the industry, Tate has worked as a cutman for 18 years. He’s built a strong bond with many fighters – and a large online following of those who like to observe his playful and comedic interactions with some of the UFC’s top talent.
https://www.instagram.com/p/C5Y_8c3PwY6/
Perhaps Tate’s most popular reoccurring Instagram segment highlights his “rivalry” with [autotag]Gilbert Burns[/autotag] and other Brazilian fighters. No setting is safe from sneak attack takedown attempts by Burns, who appears to get a tremendous amount of pleasure out of dragging Tate to the floor wherever they cross paths.
“The thing with me and Gilbert is that I’m a mouth,” Tate said. “If you ever see the content with me and DC, I just don’t know when to shut up. Exactly, I was talking trash to Gilbert and of course he took me down. So I think it started in Houston, Texas. I was like, ‘Dude, you’re not so tough.’ I grabbed him and picked him up. Then, it was on from there. Of course, he ended up beating me up. Then, when he’d have his back turned, I’d sneak in and then run away. He ate it up.
“He’s held me and the whole Brazilian community has embraced me, from him to Charles (Oliveira) to so many of the other fighters. Again, I feel like what I do is that I have a serious job and I come in there for five minutes and make it unserious. Then, they can get back to doing what they doing. That just helps me and everything else. What you see is what you get. It’s not just me hamming it up for the cameras. I really am a goofball.”
Tate recalls one time in particular that a play-scuffle with Burns almost took a turn in a Houston elevator. Luckily for the innocent bystanders, the ride was only so long.
“There was an African convention going on,” Tate said. “So we’re in the elevator. It was Gilbert and a couple of his teammates. We go at it. This woman is in the elevator and she freaks out. He’s like, ‘No, no, you guys got to stop.’ But I was already committed. I was like, ‘I’ve got to win this one because the door is open and I’ve got to run away.’ That’s the only time it’s ever happened. Now, people just kind of look and go, ‘Oh, that’s interesting.’ Now, when they see me and Gilbert together, they almost want to see us start fighting. I’m like, ‘OK.’ So it’s a lot of fun. It’s a blast.”
The never-ending takedown battle is just one way Tate tries to radiate good energy. He also has gone viral for his hilarious reactions to various warmup routines, including the time coach Marcio Malko gave hype slaps to Marina Rodriguez.
Tate says his usual cutman work week is limited to a couple days. While his job description centers around dressing up wounds, Tate proudly heals minds and spirits through humor and positivity.
“We typically get in on a Friday,” Tate said. “Then on that day, I do all my prep work. I make my knuckle pads. I get my gear in order for the fight that night. That’s it. I’ll go out and meet the fans and socialize. I’ll have a great time and goof off and get more content posted, laugh with the guys and then relax. A lot of it is prep work, just being ready for the fight on Saturday.”
Gilbert Burns thinks Colby Covington has the style to pose problems for Joaquin Buckley at UFC Tampa.
[autotag]Gilbert Burns[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Colby Covington[/autotag] has the style to pose problems for Joaquin Buckley.
Former interim welterweight champion Covington (17-4 MMA, 12-4 UFC) takes on Buckley (20-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) in Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 63 main event at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla. (ESPN2, ESPN+).
Burns points to Buckley’s loss to Logan Storley at Bellator 197 in 2018 – a fight which prompted Buckley to move up to middleweight – as a reason to favor Covington.
“I think Buckley’s in the best momentum right now, but (wrestling is) Buckley’s kryptonite,” Burns told Submission Radio. “One of my favorite teammates is Logan Storley, he was the interim Bellator champ, he fought Buckley, and Logan just outwrestled him.
“He just took him down, beat him up with ground-and-pound, took him down again, beat him up with ground-and-pound. Destroyed him with ground-and-pound, and that’s something that Colby really can do.”
Since moving back down to welterweight, Buckley is 5-0, most recently knocking out Stephen Thompson at UFC 307 in October. However, former title challenger Burns thinks if Covington can weather an early storm, he’ll swarm Buckley.
“Colby’s always training,” Burns said. “I know those guys from MMA Masters, Daniel Valverde and Cesar Carneiro, they say that he’s always in the gym. The guy is always training, he’s always in shape. I think Colby might give a lot of problems to Buckley, keep taking him down with that crazy pace.
“Buckley’s a big guy with a lot of muscle. If Buckley cannot put Colby out of there in the first or the second round, I think Colby will overwhelm him and beat him up. Colby can get maybe a dominant decision win, or Buckley can get a quick knockout in the first or in the second round.”
Gilbert Burns explains his surprising prediction for Shavkat Rahkmonov vs. Ian Machado Garry at UFC 310.
There are very few people, if any, who might have better insight into Saturday’s UFC 310 co-main event than [autotag]Gilbert Burns[/autotag].
Burns, a former UFC welterweight title challenger and longtime contender of the division, has trained with both [autotag]Ian Machado Garry[/autotag] and [autotag]Shavkat Rakhmonov[/autotag] at Kill Cliff in South Florida. A lot has been made about the fact that Rakhmonov submitted Machado Garry in sparring and yet, Burns thinks Machado Garry can get the job done.
“I do believe (Machado Garry can beat Rakhmonov), and again, I’m not in the gym, and I wasn’t part of anyone’s camp. I was in Brazil, I had just had surgery, so I’m not training, I’m a little out of both guys’ camp,” Burns said on “Show Me The Money.” “When a guy says that, and Ian’s clip is just 20, 30 seconds, I just feel Shavkat is overconfident because he subbed him before (in training).”
Forget about the past?
Burns believes Machado Garry (18-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) has improved a lot since that highly talked-bout training session at Kill Cliff. He thinks Rakhmonov (15-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) should be careful in not putting too much stock in the past.
“The guy that Shavkat finished a year or two ago is not the same guy right now,” Burns said. “That’s why I kind of like going with Ian. Again, I like both guys. Shavkat is part of the team now, but like I said, I have not been part of the camp. I like both guys, so I’m not picking Ian because I don’t like Shavkat. I like both guys.”
Saturday’s co-main event bout is scheduled to go for 25 minutes. Burns does think the length of the fight plays to Rakhmonov’s advantage – which makes the prediction tricky.
“I don’t think (his wrestling is good enough to get takedowns whenever he wants),” Burns said. “I think he’s very good at wrestling. I think he can work a lot of body locks and against the cage he’s very good, very tall. He’s got very good boxing, and he’s not afraid to get punched or go for the takedown. I think if the fight was three rounds, I would be big on Ian Garry because in three rounds he can be in and out like Ciryl Gane. But five rounds, maybe. It depends on how the first rounds go.”
Is Sean Brady a legit threat to the UFC welterweight title after Saturday’s win over Gilbert Burns? We discuss on “Spinning Back Clique.”
[autotag]Sean Brady[/autotag] logged a big win Saturday – arguably the biggest of his career.
The rising welterweight contender beat former title challenger [autotag]Gilbert Burns[/autotag] with a unanimous decision in the UFC Fight Night 242 main event in Las Vegas. The result vastly altered the landscape at the top of the UFC’s welterweight division and opened new bout possibilities.
With this result, can Brady (17-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC) be considered a serious threat to the belt? What’s next for Burns (22-8 MMA, 15-8 UFC) after his third consecutive loss?
MMA Junkie’s Brian “Goze” Garcia, Nolan King, Danny Segura and host “Gorgeous” George Garcia discuss Brady’s dominant win over Burns, along with other key results from UFC Fight Night 242.
Watch their discussion in the video above, and don’t miss this week’s complete episode of “Spinning Back Clique” below on YouTube.
On the latest episode of Spinning Back Clique, we discuss Sean Brady’s win over Gilbert Burns, Demetrious Johnson’s retirement, UFC 306, and more.
Check out this week’s “Spinning Back Clique,” MMA Junkie’s weekly live show that takes a spin through the biggest topics in mixed martial arts.
This week’s panel of Brian “Goze” Garcia, Nolan King and Danny Segura will join host “Gorgeous” George Garcia live at 1 p.m. ET (10 a.m. PT) to discuss and debate the following topics:
A couple of fresh faces stepped into title contention, while a couple of veterans were set back. Saturday at UFC Fight Night 242, [autotag]Sean Brady[/autotag] picked up a big win, dominating [autotag]Gilbert Burns[/autotag] to win a unanimous decision in the main event. [autotag]Natalia Silva[/autotag] also earned a win on the scorecards against former champion [autotag]Jessica Andrade[/autotag]. We discuss those two key wins, along with other highlights from the card.
UFC wasn’t the only brand in action. Bellator Champions Series: San Diego saw [autotag]Usman Nurmagomedov[/autotag] defend his lightweight title in the main event. Former UFC contender [autotag]Lorenz Larkin[/autotag] picked up a big KO win over Levan Chokheli, cementing himself as a No. 1 contender. What’s next for Nurmagomedov? Can Larkin become champion at 38? We discuss.
A legend of the game decided to hang up the gloves. Former UFC and ONE flyweight champion [autotag]Demetrious Johnson[/autotag] announced his retirement. Where does Johnson rank among the all-time greats? What legacy does he leave behind? We look back at the career of “Mighty Mouse” and his impact on MMA.
For our final segment, we look ahead to UFC 306 at Sphere in Las Vegas. The card, which celebrates Mexican Independence Day weekend, features two title fights: [autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Merab Dvlashvili[/autotag] in the main event, and [autotag]Alexa Grasso[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag] 3 in the co-main. We analyze the pair of championship fights, along with other featured bouts on the card.
