200-plus rounds of sparring didn’t prepare Gilbert Burns for Kamaru Usman at UFC 258, with ‘Durinho’ opening up about how their previous sparring sessions at Sanford MMA differed from the real thing on fight night.
Burns, who used to train with Usman in Florida before the latter relocated to Colorado to train under Trevor Wittman, said he was surprised by how well ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’s’ chin held up in the first round after being blasted with some of his best strikes.
“I was surprised with his chin, because I hit him with everything,” Burns told MMA Junkie’s John Morgan following his third-round TKO loss to the reigning UFC welterweight champion (h/t BJPenn.