Gilbert Burns, come on down.
You’re the next contestant on “Can an aging ex-UFC title challenger maintain his position in the rankings against a rising young stud?”
A 39-year-old Brazilian, Burns will have the chance to answer on Saturday at the Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba, where he’ll meet surging Canadian fan favorite Mike Malott in the main event of a 12-bout card.
Burns was finished in three rounds by then-champ Kamaru Usman in a bid for welterweight gold five years ago and is sub-.500 (3-5) in eight fights since, including a three-year slide in which he’s lost to Belal Muhammad (UD 3), Jack Della Maddalena (KO 3), Sean Brady (UD 5) and Michael Morales (KO 1).
In fact, he’s not won a fight since beating Jorge Masvidal in the latter’s retirement fight on the UFC 287 show in Miami in April 2023.
Meanwhile, Malott arrives on a three-fight heater, having handled Trevin Giles (UD 3), Charles Radtke (KO 2)) and Kevin Holland (UD 3) since he was stopped in Round 3 by Neil Magny on the UFC 297 undercard in January 2024.
B/R’s combat team is in position to deliver a real-time list of the show’s definitive winners and losers. Take a look at what we come up with and drop a thought in the app comments.
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