Massive welterweight fight booked for UFC 264 as the UFC just booked Gilbert Burns vs. Stephen Thompson. Two fighters who have fought for the belt but came up short, and a win here will likely grant another title shot, especially for Stephen Thompson.
The jiu jitsu master meets the karate specialist 🔥👀 #UFC264 pic.twitter.com/6Ayz2k1JQF
— UFC (@ufc) April 28, 2021
It will be an important fight for Stephen Thompson since it might be his last chance for a title run. Thompson has fought for the title twice and it was against the same opponent, Tyron Woodley.
In his first title fight, it was a very much close fight that it ended in a draw, so it would make sense for the UFC to book another rematch. The rematch did not live up to the hype, but it was basically a chess match, but it was lackluster.
Since then, Thompson suffered a few more losses against Darren Till and brutal knockout loss against Anthony Pettis but There is no doubt that Thompson has climbed his way back up once in the rankings, he is riding 2 win streak against Vicente Luque and Geoff Neal.
As for Gilbert Burns, he had an impressive year welterweight run, but just fell short against his former teammate, Kamaru Usman. He has knocked out Demian Maia and even gave a one sided beating against Tyron Woodley that granted him a title shot. He is looking to get another shot for the title, if he stacks up a few wins.
In terms of stylistically, Gilbert Burns is a BJJ specialist, so Burns is looking to go the ground if he wants to have a safer win but will he be able to take down Wonderboy? Burns has also worked on his striking, he even knocked down Woodley, Maia, and even Usman which is impressive.
Even though Burns has improved his striking, Thompson may still have the striking advantage mainly because that is Thompson’s best weapon. The way he manages his distance and footwork could provide problems against Burns. It will be an interesting matchup for both parties.
