Preview - UFC Fight Night: Woodley vs. Burns
Earlier this month, the UFC came to the rescue of sports fans around the globe who were craving to witness some live-action by holding three action-packed live events in Jacksonville, Florida. The high-octane action kicked off with the wonderfully stacked UFC 249 pay-per-view where Justin Gaethje destroyed Tony Ferguson in the main event to become the interim lightweight champion. The massively successful event was followed by UFC Fight Night: Smith vs. Teixeira and the week full of live MMA action was capped off with Fight Night: Overeem vs Harris.
This week, the promotion is all set to return to the home of combat sports, Las Vegas with UFC Fight Night: Woodley vs. Burns set to go down inside the UFC APEX facility. The card is headlined by a very important bout in the welterweight division as former champion Tyron Woodley returns to the Octagon to take on the in-form Brazilian, Gilbert Burns.
The co-main event of the night features a heavyweight showdown between Blagoy Ivanov and Augusto Sakai in a fight that ill determine who breaks through into the Top 15 of the UFC heavyweight roster.
Other fights on the card include a welterweight bout between Kevin Holland and Daniel Rodriguez; an explosive women's strawweight contest between Mackenzie Dern and Hannah Cifers; a lightweight clash between Roosevelt Roberts and Brok Weaver.
Let's take a closer look at the main event of UFC Fight Night: Burns vs. Woodley.
The UFC have put together an exciting clash for this week’s main event as Tyron Woodley and Gilbert Burns will enter the Octagon with a point to prove. Former champ Woodley must show that he is still the wrecking machine he once was during his two-and-a-half- year reign as the UFC welterweight champion while Gilbert Burns must be itching to prove that he belongs with the big boys of the 170lbs division.
Tyron Woodley
Tyron Woodley makes a comeback to the Octagon for the first time since losing his title to Kamaru Usman back in March last year in a fight that saw "T-Wood's" two-and-a-half-year reign in the 170lbs division come to an end. Prior to the loss, Tyron Woodley was on a seven-fight unbeaten streak, having successfully defended the title four times. The fight against Burns is crucial for Woodley because a loss could mean a very long road back to the title for him.
Speaking to the media ahead of his fight with Burns, he said “People only remember you for your last outing and it’s been so long ago, it’s time to remind them that I’m still in a violent headspace. I don’t know if I’ve ever been this focused during my stint in the UFC and that’s how I know I’m ready to go. This fight is going to be a clear case of someone asking for something they didn’t really know what they were asking for. I’m gonna let the person talk but when we get in there in the octagon, the performance I put on is going to be crazy. That’s a mismatch. That ain’t even fair and people are gonna feel bad for Burns”
(Source)
Gilbert Burns
Gilbert Burns heads into the fight against Tyron Woodley as one of the most promising fighters in the UFC. The Brazilian was one of the breakthrough stars of 2019, posting a total of three victories out of which a couple were fights he took on short notice, knocking out Aleksei Kunchenko and edging past Gunnar Nelson by unanimous decision. Earlier this year, Burns continued his fiery run atop the welterweight division with a first-round stoppage victory against the legendary Demian Maia at UFC Fight Night 170 in March. Gilbert Burns walks into the fight on the back of a 5-fight win streak and will look to establish himself as top contender by beating former champion Woodley this Sunday.
Speaking to the media ahead of this fight Burns said, “I think it’s a good matchup. I think I match up very well against Tyron Woodley. And I can’t wait. I’m gonna dominate Woodley and get the title shot. Kamaru has been helping me slot since last week. He gave me a lot of details and insights on Tyron Woodley. I trained with Robbie Lawler that Tyron Woodley beat and I trained with Kamaru Usman that beat Tyron Woodley. So I have very good insights on Tyron Woodley and that gives me more confidence to fight him.”
(Source)
Given below is the main card of UFC Fight Night: Woodley vs. Burns.
Welterweight Bout - Tyron Woodley Vs Gilbert Burns
Heavyweight Bout - Blagoy Ivanov Vs Augusto Sakai
Welterweight Bout - Kevin Holland Vs Daniel Rodriguez
Lightweight Bout - Roosevelt Roberts Vs Brok Weaver
Women Strawweight Bout - Mackenzie Dern Vs Hannah Cifers
Tune in to watch UFC Fight Night : Woodley vs Burns LIVE and EXCLUSIVE on SONY TEN 2 and SONY TEN 3 channels on 31st May 2020 from 6.30 am IST