Having been promoted from the prelims to the main card of UFC 252, Daniel Pineda’s return to the UFC for the first time since 2014 was a successful one. As an underdog against featherweight prospect Herbert Burns, Pineda unleashed some serious damage on Burns, culminating in a second-round TKO finish against the feared grappler and brother of UFC welterweight contender Gilbert Burns. Pineda was the considerable underdog and he looked fantastic, whereas Burns not only lost but lost 20% of his purse to Daniel after missing weight on Friday.
Pineda got off to a bright start by cracking Burns with a vicious right hand, but Burns cleared the cobwabs and scored the takedown. Pineda did well to escape and get to his feet and then take Burns down. He looked to get some ground-and-pound and did have some effective offense. Pineda also thwarted a couple of armbar attempts and kept the heavy top pressure. It was no doubt impressive stuff against a feared grappler. Burns threw up a triangle choke and Pineda shook that off and continued his dominance through the end of the round one. A knee at the start of the round did cut Pineda but otherwise the most significant moments were Pineda’s.
In round two, a quick right hand and rapid level change saw Burns get the takedown and connect a couple of head shots. Pineda used butterfly sweep to briefly get Burns off of him but Burns maintained control and got into full mount. Daniel escaped and then when Burns got the back, but Pineda reversed into top position. He advanced into crucifix position and unleashed a ton of elbows. Burns was both exhausted and hurt and referee Mark Smith did the right thing by stopping the fight.
Official result: Daniel Pineda def. Herbert Burns by TKO (strikes from crucifix) at 4:37 of round 2
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