MANILA, Philippines – Gilbert Burns versus Sean Brady.
That’s the main event of UFC Fight Night on Sunday, September 8, at the Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada.
For the Brazilian Burns, this fight represents a pathway for one last chance for a shot at the UFC welterweight title.
There was a time when Burns was one of the most frightening Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu fighters on the planet. He was winning title after title if not garnering a top three finish.
And when he entered the UFC in 2014, the good times continued to roll when he won his first three bouts. Then Rashid Megamedov stopped him and it seemed like after every fight or two, he would follow it up with a loss. None perhaps more damaging than a third round knockout at the hands of Kamaru Usman in UFC 258 in February 2021.
In Burns’ six fights since the Usman loss, he is 3-3 with two successive losses to Belal Muhammad and Jack Della Maddalena. In both fights, he was outclassed. He is now 15-7 in the UFC, 22-7 overall.
While all seven defeats in Burns’ career are in the UFC, it merely supports that the UFC is the top combat sports organization in the world.
He will be spotting Brady with disadvantage at age and mileage if not confidence.
Brady is the eighth-ranked welterweight to Burns’ No. 5. He is seven years younger than Burns. Furthermore, Brady is a former Caged Fury welterweight champion who had two successful title defenses.
Since Brady entered the UFC in 2019, he is 6-1, 16-1 overall.
After also losing to Belal in October 2022, he bounced back with a Performance of the Night win over Kevin Gastellum.
“A confidence-booster before taking on Burns,” Brady described.
“It feels amazing. I had the best performance of my life (against Gastellum),” added Brady. “This one will be better. If the best Sean Brady shows up, I can beat anyone on the planet.”
“For me, losing my first fight was hard but I worked on the right things and worked with the right people to come back.”
“Gilbert is skilled on the ground and a grind-it-out fighter. Unfortunately for Gilbert, he lost two fights. And I aim to make it three.”
It’s Burns at the twilight of his career and he would like to win his first UFC title, while Brady is looking to defeat a legend and cement himself a title shot.
This exciting grind-it-out match is the main event of UFC Fight Night that will be televised live in the Philippines. The preliminary cards begin at 4 a.m., with the main card scheduled for 7 a.m. Fans can watch this event on the Premier Sports Channel and Tap Sports on Sky Cable and Cignal as well as on Blast TV streaming application.