Burns earns dominant win as Masvidal retires
Gilbert Burns spoiled Jorge Masvidal's homecoming - and sent him into retirement - with a dominant victory.
Burns defeated Masvidal via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) in the highly anticipated UFC 287 co-main event, and a battle of former welterweight title challengers, Saturday night in Miami.
After the fight, Masvidal, one of the biggest stars in the UFC, took off his gloves and indicated he was retiring from mixed martial arts.
"Sometimes your favorite basketball player ain't got that 3-pointer no more. Your favorite quarterback loses that rifle. I don't feel the same when I get in here no more," Masvidal said in his postfight interview. "It's been 20 long years. I love all of you."
Masvidal, whose career started from viral street fights alongside Kimbo Slice in his hometown of Miami, competed in the city for the first time as a UFC fighter. This was the promotion's first event there since UFC 47 in April 2003. Masvidal attended that show as a fan, and this time, he was one of the main attractions.
"UFC came here 20 years ago, and it inspired me to chase this dream for 20 years," Masvidal said. "Fifty some fights later, hopefully I inspired someone here to go fight for theirs, no matter what it is."
Following a tentative first round, Burns outpointed Masvidal on the feet, consistently landing with his right hand, and controlled him with grappling throughout the rest of the fight.
The Brazilian tagged Masvidal several times in the third and final round, including with a big right hand and then an uppercut. He converted four of six takedown attempts in the bout.
Burns, who challenged Kamaru Usman for welterweight gold in 2021, called for a title shot in his postfight interview.
"(Champion) Leon Edwards, Colby Covington, whoever is holding that belt, I'm coming for you," Burns said. "I'm not taking no other fight. Only the title fight. Come on."
UFC president Dana White later said at the postfight press conference that Burns would serve as the backup fighter for the next title fight between Edwards and Covington, which is expected to take place later this year.
With the victory, Burns has now won two fights in a row. He submitted Neil Magny in the first round of a UFC 283 bout in January. "Durinho" last fell short in a "Fight of the Year" candidate against top contender Khamzat Chimaev in April 2022.
Masvidal, 38, rides off into the sunset on the heels of a four-fight losing streak. His final professional victory came against Nate Diaz for the "BMF" title in November 2019.
"Gamebred" had competed in the UFC since 2013 and as a pro since 2003, but he only broke through as one of the most popular fighters in the world in 2019. He knocked out Darren Till at a UFC London event and then had a viral scuffle with Edwards backstage. That win set up a fight with Ben Askren, in which Masvidal landed a flying knee in five seconds and broke the record for fastest UFC win. He finished his year with a TKO win over Diaz for the "BMF" title in a highly anticipated pay-per-view main event at Madison Square Garden.
Eight months later, Masvidal fought for a UFC championship for the first time and was dominated by Usman. He fought Usman in an immediate rematch in April 2021 and was brutally knocked out in the second round. Then, Masvidal faced Covington, his former training partner and friend, in a March 2022 grudge match and came up short in a lopsided decision.
Ahead of his fight with Burns, 36, Masvidal said he expected to fight Edwards for the welterweight title if he won and may retire if he were to lose. Masvidal was ranked 11th in the division, and Burns was fifth.
Masvidal said Saturday he's a "multimillionaire" and is "good for life."