A welterweight matchup between standouts Gilbert Burns and Neil Magny is expected UFC 283 on Jan. 21.
Multiple people with knowledge of the promotion’s plans confirmed the planned fight to MMA Fighting following an initial report from ESPN.com. UFC 283 is expected to take place at Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro. The official bout order has not been released, though Burns vs. Magny is likely to be featured on the pay-per-view main card.
Burns, a one-time title challenger, hoped to get a fight with two-time challenger Jorge Masvidal, whom he claimed turned down multiple offers to fight him. Masvidal responded with an expletive-filled response welcoming the fight on his timeline.
Burns is seven months removed from a “Fight of the Year” candidate against Khamzat Chimaev. He was able to hurt the fast-rising contender but ultimately fell short when the Chechen fighter rallied in deep waters. That left Burns at 1-1 since a failed bid for the welterweight belt against now-former champ Kamaru Usman at UFC 273.
Magny called out Burns after an impressive win over Daniel Rodriguez at UFC Vegas 64, which put him back in the win column after a submission loss to Shavkat Rakhmonov in his previous outing. With his win over Rodriguez, Magny became the all-time leader in welterweight UFC wins.
UFC 283 is expected to feature a flyweight quadrilogy against champ Deiveson Figueiredo and ex-champ Brandon Moreno.
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