'I watched the fight possibly over 20 times already' - Gilbert Burns examines the details of his UFC 258 defeat to Kamaru Usman
Gilbert Burns has revealed that he has watched his UFC 258 fight against Kamaru Usman ‘possibly over 20 times already’. Burns also proceeded to examine the details of his loss in the UFC welterweight title fight.
Burns faced former longtime teammate and current UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman for the latter’s title in the main event of UFC 258. Despite knocking Usman down with a huge right hand and almost finishing the latter in round one, Gilbert Burns went on to lose the fight via TKO in round three.
Speaking to MMA Junkie, Gilbert Burns explained what went wrong in his UFC 258 matchup – a fight that he was handily winning in the early stages. Burns stated:
“It’s always painful. But as the days are going, I’m feeling better. I watched the fight several times, possibly over 20 times already.”
“I started very good, and I lost the patience. I saw the knockout, and I started going after it too much; loaded up on a lot of punches. I was out of my zone at the time, but it was right there. If I was a little bit more patient, a little bit more relaxed, even if I was listening to Vicente Luque, the things that he was saying, ‘hey, don’t load up. Keep the quick punches. He’s not fighting you.’”
“When I was trying to be quick and not loading up, he wasn’t finding no jab at me; nothing. Head movement was on point. Footwork was on point. But as soon as I hit him hard once, I was out of there. And it was hard to get me back on my flow mode, which is hard. But I’m feeling good right now.” (*H/T Sportskeeda for the transcription)
Gilbert Burns reiterated that he was too excited pursuing the finish and ended up exhausted en route to a TKO loss in their UFC 258 matchup.
Gilbert Burns is optimistic about his UFC future
Gilbert Burns was visibly distraught inside the octagon after his loss at UFC 258. However, in the ensuing days, Durinho has asserted that he is still working hard in his quest to win UFC gold.
Burns has indicated that he’s willing to face any opponent the UFC puts in front of him and work his way back to the UFC welterweight title. Kamaru Usman is rumored to be facing Jorge Masvidal next in what will be a rematch of their UFC 251 fight, which Usman won via unanimous decision in July 2020.