MMA fighter Gilbert Burns has expressed interest in welcoming former UFC interim lightweight champion Dustin Poirier to the 170-pound category if Poirier moves to welterweight, with Burns targeting an early 2024 match potentially.
The former UFC interim lightweight champion, Dustin Poirier, is considering moving to welterweight soon. In response to this, Gilbert Burns, another prominent figure in the UFC, has expressed his desire to be the first to challenge Poirier in the 170 pound category. Burns, who incurred a shoulder injury during a fight with Belal Muhammad in May, anticipates he might be able to go back to unrestricted training by September. He thinks an early 2024 match with Poirier would be beneficial for all parties involved.
Burns has made it clear that Poirier is his preferred opponent. He recently commented on a podcast, stating, “If you ask me which fight I wanted, it’s Dustin Poirier. He’s moving up and that would be a super cool fight, but everyone’s calling him out, everybody wants him, so I won’t talk too much about it. But it’s a cool fight because of his name, because he’s moving up. It makes sense for him to fight against a top-five welterweight.”
This comes after a successful 2023 for Burns, where he won two out of his three matches. His victories included choking Neil Magny out in one round, followed by a retirement match for Jorge Masvidal three months later. Despite suffering a shoulder injury during a match with Muhammad, which he took on short notice, Burns managed to complete the full 25 minute fight. Talking future plans, he believes only “big fights” hold any value for him. He categorically refused to fight lower-ranked opponents, saying, “There’s no point fighting someone ranked 13 or 14. It does nothing for me now. I’m already waiting [to recover], so I’ll wait for a good fight.”
In lieu of his return, Burns had initially planned to challenge ex-Champion Kamaru Usman, whom he failed to defeat for UFC gold in 2021. However, Usman’s decision to move back to Florida and rejoin his original team at the Kill Cliff FC gym – the same place where Burns currently trains – seems to thwart that plan. Burns shared, “Kamaru is back at the gym again. That was the fight for me. But I hardly think it happens now.” He indicated a possible future match might not add much to Usman’s career, especially if he is indeed nearing retirement. Lastly, he dismissed the possibility of fighting Kelvin Gastelum, instead favoring an opponent further down the top five of the weight class. He commented, “I think Leon [Edwards] beats both [Colby Covington and Muhammad],” expressing a preference for “a double knockout” in Covington vs. Muhammad scenario.