UFC welterweight contender Gilbert Burns doesn’t appear to be holding any animosity towards Jorge Masvidal ahead of their April showdown.
While the middleweight title fight between Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya will provide a much-anticipated headline act for UFC 287, the pay-per-view’s co-main event doesn’t fall too far short when it comes to intrigue.
In it, a pair of former title challengers will look to climb back into contention at each other’s expense. While “Durinho” went someway to accomplishing that last month by dominating Neil Magny, Masvidal hasn’t had his hand raised since 2019, falling to three consecutive losses at the hands of Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington in the years since.
With that in mind, April 8 marks a crucial outing for Masvidal, who still boasts ambitions of a grudge match with current champion Leon Edwards. In the same vein, defeat at UFC 287 could prove to be terminal for Burns’ title hopes given the Miami native’s losing skid.
But while the stakes are incredibly high, it doesn’t appear that trash talk will follow suit in the buildup…
Gilbert Burns: ‘Jorge Masvidal Is A Good Guy’
During a recent appearance on Submission Radio, Burns looked ahead to his long-awaited collision with ‘BMF’ titleholder Masvidal, assessing the often-outspoken and brash “Gamebred” as a person.
“Durinho” revealed that he has somewhat of a history with Masvidal, with the pair interacting whilst supporting teammates at Titan FC events in Florida, where both men reside.
Having had respectful encounters with the UFC star, Burns is convinced that Masvidal is a “good guy.”
“I saw him a couple times here (in Florida). We have a small organization here — not even that small, it’s on UFC Fight Pass, Titan FC. I have a couple teammates on it, he has a couple teammates on it,” Burns said. “So I saw him there a couple times. We were just cool. I showed him respect (and) he respects me.
“We have a couple common friends. Not real close friends… nothing special. He’s not the gangster that people think. He is a good guy. I respect him a lot,” Burns added.
Despite Burns’ remarks, the duo seemingly haven’t shared the best relationship in recent times. After suggesting that he was offered a fight with “Gamebred” multiple times in the past few months, most recently at UFC 283, the Brazilian claimed that Masvidal should be stripped of ‘BMF’ status after turning him down.
In response, Masvidal insisted that he never agreed to the dates laid out by Burns, even labelling him a “little b*tch.”
Burns’ comments also come in spite of Masvidal’s recent run-in with the law. Following his loss to Covington last March, “Gamebred” was accused of jumping his former friend and teammate on the streets of Miami.
With legal proceedings stemming from that incident ongoing, Masvidal’s trial for aggravated battery is set to commence in May, a month after he shares the Octagon with Burns.