UFC welterweight title contender Gilbert Burns believes that Leon Edwards is “too accurate and too technical” for Colby Covington at UFC 296.
Speaking as a Stake.com ambassador, Burns remarked that Edwards can “definitely finish” Covington when they fight:
“I think Leon can definitely finish him,” Burns said. “Leon has got really crisp striking and he is overall a really underrated fighter in this welterweight division – even if he is the champion!”
Burns believes Edwards doesn’t get enough credit, and that his southpaw stance will be too much for “Chaos” to handle:
“People really do not give him a lot of credit and it might be due to the fact that he doesn’t fight too often. However, I think he can defend the takedown attempts and then get the finish against Colby.
“If you look at the Usman fights, Covington really struggled when he went southpaw and I just think Leon is too accurate and too technical.”
‘I’ve Visualized That Fight Many Times,’ Burns Would Love to Fight Covington
“Durinho” has been dreaming of a fight with Covington, and if they do meet, he believes he has what it takes to finish the American wrestler:
“That is a fight that I would absolutely love to do at some point in the future,” Burns explained. “I’ve visualized that fight so many times.
“I think I can finish Colby Covington; either I can knock him out or I can choke him out. When I start pressuring and throwing a lot of hands on him he is going to feel it and he is going to try to wrestle me.
“If he does that, then we are going to grapple and once I get him on the floor then I believe that is my world and he will not want to be there. If the fight ends up there, then I am really confident I can get the submission victory, if I haven’t already knocked him out by then.”
For now, Burns will have to wait and see if Edwards can snub Covington’s shot at the title, which – statistically speaking – is almost 100% likely. The deciding factor in this fight could be Covington’s age – 35 years-old.
UFC Veteran’s Curse
Tyron Woodley is the only fighter aged 35 or older to have won a title fight in a division below middleweight. Woodley defended his title against Demian Maia and Darren Till, and those two victories remain the only championship victories for male fighters aged 35+ below middleweight.
The current championship record for fighters below MW aged 35+ is 2-22 (you can view the complete record here). Zero fighters below welterweight have won a title at this age.
So, either Covington breaks a historic run of championship attempts, or he defies some incredible odds.
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