UFC welterweight Gilbert Burns wants his upcoming Jorge Masivdal fight turned into a five-rounder. The two 170-pounders are scheduled to square off in April at UFC 287.
The bout is set for five rounds but Burns has been vocal about turning the fight into a five-round scrap for the ‘BMF” title. Masvidal shot down the idea in a recent appearance on The MMA Hour.
During an interview with MMA Fighting, Burns revealed his talks with the UFC about tweaking the UFC 287 co-main event.
“For sure, it’s a disappointment,” Burns said. “I’m still waiting on the UFC. We’re talking with the UFC — if they say, ‘We don’t think so,’ I’m going to say please, come on. I don’t ask for much. I just want five rounds. You guys did five rounds for Leon Edwards and Nate [Diaz], you guys did five rounds on other occasions. Why not? I’m pushing, but we’re still waiting.”
“It’s very hard when one guy says no – it’s very hard for the UFC to say yes. So we’ll see. I would love to have that [‘BMF’] title in place and five rounds for sure because I just think I’m going to destroy this guy.” (h/t MMA Fighting)
Gilbert Burns Has Championship Aspirations
‘Durinho’ wants to hold UFC gold for the first time and become the UFC welterweight champion. First, he wants to make Masvidal “suffer”. Despite his requests for a five-round ‘BMF’ fight, Burns is not holding his breath.
“The main goal is destroying these guys and become champion,” Burns said. “So if it doesn’t happen, it doesn’t happen.”
“Three rounds, I’m going to make that guy suffer so much in three rounds that it should be enough, but five rounds just guarantees a finish. If the fight is five rounds, I’ll finish, but if he don’t want it, it’s all good.” (h/t MMA Fighting)
Burns last fought two weeks ago in a first-round submission win over Neil Magny at UFC 283.
