When Khamzat Chimaev broke into the UFC, he looked like a monster, rag-dolling and man-handling every one of his opponents. His performance earned him the moniker of the ‘boogeyman’ of the welterweight division until he crossed paths with Gilbert Burns. They put on an absolute war of a fight at UFC 273, as Chimaev failed to man-handle ‘Durinho’ and scored his decision win in the UFC.
That was the first time Chimaev was taken to the third round, and it really raised the credibility of Gilbert Burns as a serious force in the 170lbs weight class. While some fighters tend to avoid tough rivals, afraid to register a loss, ‘Durinho’ revealed that he was the one who pushed for a fight against Chimaev. His manager, Ali Abdelaziz, wasn’t a fan of that idea, but the Brazilian star pushed for it.
Burns claimed that he wanted to get back into the title picture and that’s why he wanted to take on a tough challenge. When he got his one and only shot at the title at UFC 251, he had to step down due to issues with COVID-19. Gilbert Burns then stated that during the time that he started discussing a potential matchup against the undefeated star, Dana White had yet to make that offer.
“Ali [Abdelaziz] didn’t want the fight. And then I say, ‘Bro, I want that fight.’ And then he said, ‘[Are] you crazy? I saw this guy train’. I say, ‘I don’t care. I will fight this guy.’” Gilbert Burns stated on the ‘Pound 4 Pound’ podcast. “The fight was never offered, but I already knew [that I] got to do something big to get another title shot. And then I was kind of talking to him about that fight, and eventually Dana offered him the fight with me.”
When Dana White approached Ali Abdelaziz and brought up the idea about Burns fighting Khamzat Chimaev, the former title contender decided to sent direct messages to the UFC CEo. In ‘Durinho’s own words, he literally made that conversation private between him and the head honcho, pushing his manager out of the equation. When the fight was official, he started his preparation, which he claimed was quite brutal.
“And then he [said], ‘Bro, you sure you want to fight?’ I say, ‘Yes, I want to fight this guy.’ And… when he told me that Dana offer, I text Dana right away. i was kind of pushing Ali out of the conversation,” Gilbert Burns added.“[After putting pressure to make the fight happen, Dana White said], ‘We’ll make the fight happen, and that was a very tough training camp.”
April 9, 2022, Jacksonville, Florida, JACKSONVILLE, FL, United States: JACKSONVILLE, FL – April 9: R-L Khamzat Chimaev punches Gilbert Burns in their welterweight bout at Vystar Memorial Arena for UFC 273: Volkanovski v The Korean event on April 9, 2022 in Jacksonville, Florida, United States. Jacksonville, Florida United States – ZUMAp175 20220409_zsa_p175_221 Copyright: xLouisxGrassex
Having taken Khamzat Chimaev to the limit, Gilbert Burns was the centre of all the praise from the community. However, the Chechen-born was not happy with that and decided to make his feelings known. Here’s what he had to say.
Khamzat Chimaev was annoyed about Gilbert Burns getting all the praise
Khamzat Chimaev was all praises for Gilbert Burns after the thrilling fight they had. Initially, he did not expect the Brazilian to bring the fight to him, but after he did, the undefeated star deemed him a “tough guy.” However, he did have a qualm regarding how the fight was perceived by the fans. Chimaev had been putting on some great performances prior to UFC 273, but because the fight against Burns was a close one, he wasn’t happy that ‘Durinho’ was getting all the praise.
“These things I don’t understand. When some people lose, why are they happy? People are saying ‘Oh Gilbert [Burns] did good, he did good!’ He’s been in the UFC [for] years,” Chimaev stated in 2022. “I started fighting five years ago… I’m also human. Everyone’s thinking I’m some kind of robot. Yes, I speak hard when I go to the press conference, because I think I can, that’s why I say it.”
Well, Khamzat posted that on social media, but later removed the post. Now, Gilbert Burns and ‘Borz’ are in different weight classes, and fans would be happy that they got to see that fight between them before ‘Chimaev’s jumping to the middleweight division. Would you like to see a rematch? Drop your comments below.
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