Khamzat Chimaev threatened to kill Gilbert Burns and claimed he isn’t a real Brazilian
© Mike Roach / Zuffa LLC
UFC welterweight contender Khamzat Chimaev embarked on a foul-mouthed tirade against his UFC 273 rival Gilbert Burns where he threatened to kill the former title challenger and questioned his patriotism.
The pair had previously been involved in a friendly chance encounter in their hotel in Jacksonville, where the highly anticipated pay-per-view will take place.
Chimaev did make fun of Burns’ size, however, advising him to eat chocolate and bananas to bulk up, and doubled down on such mockery at the final press conference ahead of their highly-anticipated meeting on Saturday.
“I’m going to smash that guy, knock him out in one minute [or] less,” Chimaev vowed. “I promise you. He’s too little boy. He’s a scared boy.”
“I said to him yesterday show his power. He couldn’t show that. He said ‘I’ll show you Saturday’ and he turned around. I was there. You’re too little, brother. You have to go to other divisions,” the 10-0 Chimaev told his foe.
“I’ll show you Saturday,” Burns repeated. “Keep that energy. I’ll do it.”
Official Borz prediction.One minute or less for @KChimaev. 😳 #UFC273pic.twitter.com/e0kkQ1nNJD
— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) April 7, 2022
Chimaev began the press conference playing a game on his mobile phone but took over the mic to make further predictions about his fight with Burns.
“I’m gonna kill that guy,” Chimaev boasted. “I have power in my hands. I don’t care what I’m going to do. I’m going to jump in the cage and smash that guy. I don’t care. He will be down [on the ground], I will smash his face. If it will be standup, I will knock him out. I don’t care.”
Then touching a raw nerve for typically-proud Brazilians, Chimaev questioned US-resident Burns’ patriotism. “That guy’s not f**king from Brazil. I am more in Brazil than him. He is not Brazilian. He speaks English, he cannot speak Portuguese,” Chimaev balked.
Borz of Brazil 🐺[ @KChimaev | #UFC273 Press Conference ] pic.twitter.com/wNLxFwQ6uq
— UFC (@ufc) April 7, 2022
Refusing to bite the bait, Burns claimed not to be able to understand ‘Borz’ and asked where the translator was.
Burns was asked why he was an underdog in the fight despite being a far more experienced fighter with a 20-4 record. Yet before he could answer, Chimaev slammed his microphone and fist on the desk and went on another rant.
“Of course he’s [the] underdog!” Chimaev boomed. “The king is here! I can see you every minute. Come on backstage, I smash your face.”
“You ain’t gonna do s**t,” a laughing Burns responded. “He’s mad! He hit the table. See you Saturday, buddy,” he told Chimaev.
These two are ready to go RIGHT NOW! 🤜🤛[ @GilbertDurinho@KChimaev | #UFC273 Press Conference ] pic.twitter.com/XUmbhfeCfU
— UFC (@ufc) April 7, 2022
Then referencing Burn’s 2021 title loss to Kamaru Usman, which saw Burns suffer an emotional breakdown after a third round KO, Chimaev teased how “that guy [cries] at all his fights”.
“When he loses the fights, he cries. He lose to my coach [Alan Nascimento] three times, he cries every time. He’s going to do the same thing again.
“If he survives the first round, his face, you won’t recognize him. It will be somebody different. I will finish him in the first round,” Chimaev warned.
Appearing to be unfazed, however, an upbeat Burns insisted he is on the road to another shot at Usman if he can take care of the division’s hottest prospect.
“I’m on my way back to the title,” Burns quipped. “I gave this guy the opportunity. I’m the number two [ranked welterweight], he’s number 11. I give him the opportunity because I want to face the toughest guys, the best guys in this division. It’s just going to be another step closer to the title.
“We are the real main event,” Burns also stated. “No disrespect to the champions for sure. Sorry [Alexander] Volkanovski, but we’re the people’s main event,” Burns finished.
While Burns versus Chimaev is lower down the card, there are indeed two co-main events at UFC 273 at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena on Saturday.
While Volkanovski attempts to successfully defend his featherweight title for the third time against the ‘Korean Zombie’ Jung Chan-sung, Petr Yan also vies to snatch the bantamweight title strap back from Aljamain Sterling and settle one of the UFC’s biggest feuds thus far this decade.
