Gilbert
Burns believes he followed the wrong blueprint once he hurt
Kamaru
Usman in the opening round of the UFC
258 headliner.
“I think I got over excited. I went Cody
Garbrandt crazy as soon as I hurt him,” Burns said at
Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “It was the second time [in
my career]. I think I made the same mistake when I fought Dan Hooker. I
got over excited. To become a champion, I cannot make those
mistakes.”
Burns hurt Usman when an overhand right during an early exchange in
their welterweight title bout at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. From
there, the Brazilian blitzed for the finish and ultimately wound up
slipping on a head kick. Burns couldn’t entice Usman into his
guard, and the champion gradually regained his bearings.
Garbrandt, the former UFC bantamweight champion, became known for
biting down on his mouthpiece and throwing caution to the wind
during a three-bout skid in which he suffered knockout losses to
T.J.
Dillashaw (twice) and Pedro
Munhoz.
Once he hurt Usman, Burns says he spent the rest of the fight
looking for the kill shot. That ultimately led to his downfall in
the form of a third-round technical knockout defeat.
“That was the mistake. I thought about it. Then I got caught,”
Burns said. “I know I can hit any one of these guys. In order to
become a champion, I have to be disciplined. I have so much respect
for my guy Cody
Garbrandt…I just went the same way.
“As soon as I saw that he was hurt, I forgot about the strategy and
went for the kill. In order to be a champion, I can’t make those
mistakes.”
Burns was visibly distraught following the loss. But he says there
is no ill will toward Usman, a former training partner.
“I still like Kamaru
Usman a lot. I have so much respect for the guy,” he said. “But
when we get there, we’re gonna fight. It’s not tennis, it’s not
soccer. It’s a fight. I’m never gonna say nothing bad about him.
When I go to the fight, I don’t see a face. I just try to
finish.”
Burns, who began his UFC tenure at 155 pounds, saw himself become a
contender at welterweight following victories over Tyron
Woodley, Demian Maia,
Alexey
Kunchenko and Gunnar
Nelson. The Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt remains focused on
his goal of eventually becoming champion even after a disheartening
setback.
“It’s life,” Burns said. “The thing that disappointed me, I’m a
warrior. I’ve been through a lot. I keep going. That’s not gonna
stop me. I was super sad because I believed so much, I worked super
hard and I failed. I’m gonna keep working. That’s it. I’m gonna do
whatever I need to do, but I’m gonna be back.”
Burns plans on taking some time off to heal up from this fight, but
he doesn’t want to stay sidelined for too long.
“I’m gonna fight again soon for sure. I need a little time off with
my family, but I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Burns said. “As soon
as I heal up, let’s say two or three weeks, Dana [White], I’m gonna
call you. I have so much work to do. The work doesn’t stop.”