Tomorrow night in the co-main event of UFC 264, we will see a pivotal matchup between top welterweight contenders. Former title challengers Gilbert Burns (19-4) and Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson (16-4-1) will go head-to-head as both look to get another crack at the welterweight strap.
UFC 264 will be the first time we’ve seen Gilbert Burns since his failed attempt to capture the title back in February. After a good start, Burns faded and he was ultimately stopped by Kamaru Usman in the third round of their title fight.
That was the first time that Burns had lost at 170 pounds. Prior to that, Burns looked like a buzzsaw in the UFC‘s welterweight division. Burns possesses great speed and power on the feet to go along with his world class jiu jitsu.
He’s going to need every tool he has tomorrow night when he takes on Wonderboy. Since late 2019, Stephen Thompson has played the role of gatekeeper in the UFC‘s welterweight division. First it was Vicente Luque and then he fought Geoff Neal in December.
Both of those guys looked to be the rising contenders, but Thompson dominated them both. The UFC‘s “NMF” will look to defeat Gilbert Burns tomorrow as he will try to secure his third shot at the welterweight title.
UFC 264 Prediction
Heading into UFC 264, Gilbert Burns is very familiar with Wonderboy Thompson. Burns was in the corner of his best friend, Vicente Luque, the night that Luque lost to Thompson. This is a fight that Burns definitely wants to get back for his friend and his team.
That said, it’s not going to be easy. Burns is going to have the speed and power advantage tomorrow night. He’s also going to have a massive advantage on the ground if the fight ever ends up there.
However, I’m not sure it will. I don’t know if Burns has the wrestling ability to get Wonderboy down at UFC 264. I’m betting that he likely won’t and for that reason, I think we are going to primarily see a standup fight.
With both men standing, I really like Wonderboy. When it comes to technique and controlling distance, it doesn’t get much better than Wonderboy. In reality, I’m expecting a very similar fight as the Vicente Luque fight.
You’re going to see Wonderboy extremely lose out there and I think he’s going to have a field day with counter straights. Burns will land his shots, but I see Thompson picking up his third consecutive win at UFC 264.
Prediction: Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson by Unanimous Decision