UFC star Gilbert Burns reflects on his journey, recent struggles, and renewed drive as he prepares to face Mike Malott in the main event at UFC Fight Night 273.
Published: April 17, 2026 2:26 PM IST
UFC star Gilbert Burns is heading into the biggest fight of his career with something to prove. The veteran Brazilian welterweight will be in action this Saturday night at UFC Fight Night 273 in Winnipeg, marking the Octagon’s first visit to the Manitoba capital in eight years.
The 39-year-old will face rising Canadian star Mike Malott in the main event at Canada Life Centre. Burns knows the stakes are high as he will be keen to make a comeback following a painful four-fight losing skid.
In an exclusive interview with India.com from Canada ahead of the high-voltage fight, when asked about his long UFC journey of 25 fight and whether that experience gives him an advantage over a younger, upcoming fighter, he said, “You know, the caliber of opponents that I face is unbelievable. Like it’s such a high level guys, you know, like champions, former champions, like pound for pound, best guys. So yeah, I do believe I gotta just carry that to the octagon, you know, like for sure I haven’t, I’m not coming from great results, but if you see the level competition that I fought, it was nothing easy, you know.”
“So I kind of had to change a little things, you know, kind of like learning with those mistakes that I made, it was an opportunity to learn, to get better. And I think I did got better. No, I did improve. And I want to show that Saturday, I do believe my experience is going to make a difference on the fight.” Burns said
Gilbert Burns eyes redemption in UFC comeback push
Burns, a former UFC welterweight title challenger, has fallen on hard times lately. His most recent outing was devastating – a first-round TKO loss to surging prospect Michael Morales at UFC Vegas 106 in May 2025. Now, with his back against the wall, he wants to remind the division why he once stood among its elite.
Burns also spoke about how he continues to improve despite being in the sport for so long and the small changes he made this time around. He also emphasized that his goal is to prove himself that he can still compete at the highest level in the UFC
“There’s a lot of things that I can get better. Like whenever you lose a fight, you open more your eyes, you know, like even sometimes on the mental aspect, like get a little bit more confident on here and there. Okay, that fight was, I had a better weight cut, so we’re going to get better on these, or this fight was like the jack fight was, I was winning, but then I made a mistake. So how we cope with that mistake? Okay, a little thing, maybe throw hands before shot.”
“There’s always a room for improvement if you really want to improve. And I want to, I want to show that, that I don’t want to prove to anyone, but I want to prove to myself that I still can compete at the highest level in the UFC. And I think that’s a great opportunity.”
Burns talks reflects on training changes and motivation to keep competing
Mike Malott head into the clash with a three-fight win streak, which features a win over Kevin Holland, and is a strong -303 favorite. Burns, a +240 underdog, is expected to face a tough challenge, with the fight going five rounds at +320.
The veteran, who looked highly motivated ahead of the clash, opened up about his current training camp, what has changes he has made, and what continues to drive him after so many years in the demanding sport of MMA
“I would talk to my coach and say, I don’t need to fight, but I want to fight. I like to fight. I know I don’t have a lot of fights left in me, but I still have a couple of good fights in me. So I want to do it, but I don’t want to make mistakes or lose like that. I want to bring my confidence up. That was the biggest thing we worked on this whole camp.”
“After I was back from concussion protocol, I started sparring again, with younger and bigger guys, getting in shape, and doing more grappling. We also set a proper plan—getting on diet early and starting strength and conditioning early too. It’s been a long camp because the fight kept getting pushed, from February to March and then to April, but I’ve been training and getting better for a long time now.”
Burns opens up guiding the new generation of fighters
Burns also spoke about playing a mentor role for younger athletes and the advice he usually gives them overall. “I do a couple of advice for sure. I show these guys the way, but better than speak is to show by example. I get there early, I get there ready to practice. Whenever I go to practice, I like to really go to practice and give my best on the practice. It’s very hard for you to train for a fight if you don’t do that every day in training.”
“If when you’re in training, you’re not fighting, you’re not training, you’re not giving your best. How are you going to do when you get in the fight and do that if you don’t actually doing that every single day? For sure, there’s a lot of technique that I show to these guys to get better. You need to get comfortable, especially when you bring them up to the grappling aspect.
Burns further stressed that his biggest lesson is about mindset – showing up to training prepared, with the right attitude, and being ready to learn and push opponents without trying to hurt them. He added that he also guides them on key areas like sleep, recovery, warm-ups, diet, and supplementation, and fully supports those who are truly committed.
When asked which opponent from any era, past or present, he would love to fight, Burns said, “Two guys that I’m such a big fan, I think George St-Pierre, that would be a fight that for sure I would like to have. I was a huge fan of Jiří Procházka, so those are two of my favorite guys to watch back then. For sure now it changes, it’s a different time, it’s different techniques, but those are the two guys that I liked the most in the beginning.”
Gilbert Burns will aim to avoid extending his career-worst losing streak to five fights and risk dropping out of the UFC welterweight rankings when he steps into the octagon for Saturday night’s main event.
When and where to watch?
Watch the UFC Fight Night – Burns vs Malott on April 19, 2026, from 5:30 AM IST live on Sony Sports Ten 2 SD & HD, Sony Sports Ten 3 SD & HD (Hindi), and Sony Sports Ten 4 SD (Tamil, Telugu & Kannada).
