Gilbert Burns has offered his unique perspective on the UFC 315 main event.
Welterweight champion Belal Muhammad will put his belt on the line against Jack Della Maddalena at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, on Saturday night.
Both men picked up wins over top contender Gilbert Burns during their rise through the 170lb ranks.
So, there is no one better placed to predict how their UFC 315 clash with play out.
Gilbert Burns predicts UFC 315 upset
Burns has struggled to make his official prediction for the fight between two of his old rivals.
‘Durinho’ originally fancied Muhammad to win, but now he thinks we will get an upset at UFC 315.
“I know it’s going to be a close fight, but I was giving a little bit of an edge to Belal,” Burns told Inside Fighting.
“Jack is so underrated. Jack is so good. I remember doing that fight, it was very hard to find the distance in the striking. He’s good. He hits very hard, has good boxing combinations, good footwork. He fights exactly the same in both stances.
“I broke his arm in the first round with a body kick and he kept fighting through the whole fight. I got his back, couldn’t do much. I took him down, couldn’t do much. I did a lot of good things but he had an answer for almost everything that I did.
“I just saw a couple of videos of Jack Della Maddalena putting Craig Jones to sleep. He’s been grappling a lot with Craig Jones and training a lot with [Alex] Volkanovski. I just think that guy is very good, super underrated.
“I think that fight is very, very close. I was a little more for Belal Muhammad, just because of the experience, training with Khabib [Numagomedov], having a lot of main events, and knowing how to win fights.
“It’s kind of 50/50 this fight… I’m leaning a little bit towards Jack Della Maddalena in the end.”
What’s next for Gilbert Burns?
Burns hasn’t fought since suffering a unanimous decision defeat to Sean Brady in September 2024.
The 38-year-old is currently riding a three-fight losing skid into his comeback at UFC Vegas 106.
Burns will square off against 17-0 prospect Michael Morales in the main event on May 17.
A win would propel the former title challenger back into the mix, but a loss will almost certainly end his hopes of becoming a UFC champion. Don’t be surprised if he retires with a loss against Morales.