The UFC has officially announced the much-awaited welterweight match-up between Gilbert Burns and the rising Khamzat Chimaev.
Promotions officials announced on social media on Saturday, UFC President Dana White confirmed the booking during the UFC 272 post-fight press conference. Burns (20-4) and Chimaev (10-0) will face off in April as part of UFC 273.
The fight everyone has been asking for 👀@GilbertDurinho vs @KChimaev
— UFC (@ufc) March 6, 2022
[ #UFC273 | April 9 | @VyStarVetArena | Tickets 🔗 https://t.co/1KZvTNW7uF ] pic.twitter.com/6qrDJ7Wss6
The event takes place on April 9, 2022 at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida. TSN's Aaron Bronstetter was the first to report the match.
Chimaev was undisputedly the breakout star of the pandemic era for the UFC. Through four UFC fights, "Borz" has stopped John Phillips, Rhys Mackie, Gerald Meerschaert, and Li Jingliang in their tracks. If it weren't for the hard fight with COVID-19, Chimaev would likely have been even more active, as he set the modern UFC record for the shortest turnaround between wins in 10 days.
Burns, who came up short in a title bid against Kamaru Usman in February 2021, returned with a win over Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson at UFC 264 last July. Since returning to the welterweight division in 2019 after a 155lbs stint, "Durinho" has held a 5-1 record.
April's UFC 273 card headlines with a featherweight title fight between champion Alexander Volkanowski and fan favorite Korean Zombie. The following bouts have been reported for the event so far:
Alexander Volkanovski (c) vs. The Korean Zombie – for the UFC featherweight championship
Aljamain Sterling (c) vs. Petr Yan (ic) – for the UFC bantamweight championship / title unification bout
Mackenzie Dern vs. Tecia Torres
Kelvin Gastelum vs. Nassourdine Imavov
Irene Aldana vs. Aspen Ladd
Ian Garry vs. Darian Weeks
Dricus du Plessis vs. Chris Curtis
Jairzinho Rozenstruik vs. Marcin Tybura
Albert Duraev vs. Anthony Hernandez
Mickey Gall vs. Mike Malott
Gavin Tucker vs. Pat Sabatini
Julio Arce vs. Daniel Santos
Mark Madsen vs. Vinc Pichel
Piera Rodriguez vs. Kay Hansen
Gilbert Burns vs. Khamzat Chimaev