5 of the best UFC fights this year, and 1 of the worst
Worst: Jorge Masvidal vs. Gilbert Burns, UFC 287
When the final horn sounded, it was sentimental. One of the most entertaining fighters was retiring from the sport. Masvidal went from fighting in backyards to UFC stardom, and despite losing, he ended his career in his South Beach kingdom.
Take that all away, put on an objective lens, and you realize how subpar that one-sided fight was. It was not the most terrible, but it had sky-high expectations that it came nowhere close to achieving. It was one of two things-- Masvidal finishes Durinho in his swan song and lives happily ever after, or the same results lead to a grudge match between Gamebred and Leon Edwards for the title.
In the end, well, that did not happen. You can tell how badly Masvidal wanted to land that kill shot. But Burns was durable and smart. Once he got a hold of Masvidal, he controlled him towards a decision. For a short fight, they spent much time mirroring each other and not throwing as much as expected. Burns landed four takedowns, got nearly six minutes of control time, and that's all she wrote. The Miami crowd made their displeasure known during the fight but still gave an ovation upon Masvidal's farewell.
It would have been a great fight if it happened at the height of Masvidal's rise years ago. Unfortunately, we got the watered-down version of this dream match.
dark. Next. What happens if an MMA fight is a draw?