Muhammad vs Burns

Who won Muhammad vs Burns?

Belal Muhammad beat Gilbert Burns by unanimous decision in their 5 round contest during the co-main event of UFC 288, on Saturday 6th May 2023 at Prudential Center in Newark.

The scorecards were announced in favor of the winner Belal Muhammad.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 5 rounds in the Welterweight division, which meant the weight limit was 170 pounds (12.1 stone or 77.1 KG).

Muhammad vs Burns stats

Belal Muhammad stepped into the octagon with a record of 22 wins, 3 losses and 0 draws, 5 of those wins coming by the way of knock out and 1 by submission.

Gilbert Burns made his way to the cage with a record of 22 wins, 5 losses and 0 draws, 6 of those wins coming by knock out and 9 by submission.

This was Belal Muhammad's 20th fight in the UFC, having made his debut for the promotion in 2016. Gilbert Burns marked his 24th fight for them, having made his own debut for the promotion in 2014.

Belal Muhammad's UFC record stood at 15-4-0, while Gilbert Burns' came in at 15-9-0.

The stats suggested Burns had a slight advantage in power over Muhammad, with a 27% knock out percentage over Muhammad's 23%.

If the fight went to the ground, their records suggested Burns had a massive advantage over Muhammad, boasting a 41% submission rate over Muhammad's 5%.

Belal Muhammad was the younger man by 2 years, at 36 years old.

Muhammad had a height advantage of 1 inch over Burns. Despite this, both fighters had a equal reach.

Muhammad's experience as a professional fighter was relatively equal to Burns', having had 2 fewer fights, and made his debut in 2012, 6 months later than Burns, whose first professional fight was in 2012. He had fought 19 more professional rounds, 89 to Burns' 70.

Muhammad vs Burns form

Belal Muhammad had beaten 4 of his last 5 opponents.

In his last fight before this contest, he had won against Vicente Luque at UFC Fight Night: Luque vs. Muhammad 2 on 16th April 2022 by unanimous decision in their 5 round contest at UFC APEX, Las Vegas, United States.

Previous to that, he had beaten Stephen Thompson at UFC Fight Night on 18th December 2021 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest.

Going into that contest, he had defeated Demian Maia at UFC 263 on 12th June 2021 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at Gila River Arena, Glendale, United States.

Before that, his fight against Leon Edwards at UFC Vegas 21 on 13th March 2021 ended in a no contest.

He was victorious against Lyman Good at UFC Vegas 3 on 20th June 2020 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at UFC APEX, Las Vegas.

Gilbert Burns had beaten 3 of his last 5 opponents.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he had won against Jorge Masvidal at UFC 287 on 8th April 2023 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at Miami-Dade Arena, Miami, United States.

Previous to that, he had beaten Neil Magny at UFC 283 on 21st January 2023 by submission in the 1st round at Jeunesse Arena, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Going into that contest, he had lost to Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 273 on 9th April 2022 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena, Jacksonville, United States.

Before that, he had defeated Stephen Thompson at UFC 264 on 10th July 2021 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas.

He had been beaten by Kamaru Usman at UFC 258 on 13th February 2021 by knockout in the 3rd round in their UFC Welterweight championship fight at UFC APEX, Las Vegas.

Activity check

In terms of activity leading into the fight, Gilbert Burns had been fighting more than Belal Muhammad.

Going to this contest, Belal Muhammad had last fought 3 years, 2 months and 11 days ago, while Gilbert Burns' last outing had been 2 years, 2 months and 19 days ago.

Muhammad's last 5 fights had come over a period of 5 years and 7 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 1 year and 1 day. In those fights, he fought a total of 16 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 3.2 rounds on average.

Burns' last 5 fights had come over a period of 4 years, 4 months and 14 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 10 months and 15 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 13 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 2.6 rounds on average.

What were the odds on Muhammad vs Burns?

Belal Muhammad was a 5/4 (+130) underdog going into the contest, while Gilbert Burns made his way into the ring at 67/100 (-150) with oddsmakers.