UFC 258: Usman vs. Burns | Event Profile, Full Results & Legacy
- Conor McBragger
- May 16
- 7 min read
Updated: Jun 15
Introduction
UFC 258: Usman vs. Burns took place on Saturday, February 13, 2021 at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas. It was the most personally charged welterweight title fight of 2021, the second straight Kamaru Usman title defense at the APEX, and one of the more dramatic championship comebacks of the year — Usman survived an early right hand that visibly hurt him before grinding Gilbert Burns to a third-round TKO. The card produced an estimated 600,000 pay-per-view buys.
Usman and Burns had been training partners and close friends at Sanford MMA in Florida for years. The fight had been postponed once (Burns had pulled out of an earlier July 2020 booking after testing positive for COVID-19) and the rebook had taken on a tense edge. Burns landed a clean right hand 28 seconds into round one that visibly stunned Usman — the first time the champion had been hurt in a UFC fight since 2018. Usman weathered the storm, returned fire by the end of the round, and took control of the second and third rounds before scoring the finish at 0:34 of round three.
The co-main was a quiet but important matchup: Alexa Grasso, making her women's flyweight debut after years at strawweight, won a unanimous decision over Maycee Barber. The win launched the run that would eventually see Grasso challenge Valentina Shevchenko for the women's flyweight title at Noche UFC in September 2023 — a fight Grasso won by fourth-round submission to claim the belt.
Contents
• FAQ
Quick Stats
📅 Date: Saturday, February 13, 2021
📍 Venue: UFC APEX, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
👥 Attendance: 0 (closed-door, COVID-19 era)
💰 Gate: $0 (no live audience)
📺 PPV Buys: ~600,000
📡 Broadcast: Pay-per-view (ESPN+ in USA)
🏆 Main Event: Kamaru Usman (c) vs. Gilbert Burns — UFC Welterweight Championship (170 lbs)
✅ Result: Usman def. Burns via TKO (punches) — R3, 0:34
🥇 Co-Main: Alexa Grasso def. Maycee Barber via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) — Women's Flyweight
The Build-Up
Kamaru Usman entered UFC 258 17-1 in MMA and 12-0 in the UFC, the most dominant welterweight champion in promotion history. He had defended the title twice — against Colby Covington at UFC 245 in December 2019 and against Jorge Masvidal at UFC 251 in July 2020. Burns, his close friend and training partner, was 19-3 with a five-fight UFC win streak that included a unanimous-decision win over former champion Tyron Woodley and a first-round TKO of Demian Maia.
The personal angle was unavoidable. Both men trained at Sanford MMA in Florida and had been close friends for years. Burns had publicly stated that the fight was "strictly business." Usman, for his part, had said the matchup was emotionally difficult: "This is the hardest fight to take, mentally. But I'm a champion. I have to defend."
The fight had originally been booked for July 2020 — Burns had pulled out after testing positive for COVID-19. Betting opened Usman at -250.
Main Event: Usman vs. Burns
Burns landed the cleanest shot of the fight 28 seconds in. A counter right hand caught Usman squarely on the temple, dropping his hips and visibly hurting him. For thirty seconds, Usman fought defensively against the cage — the first time in his UFC career he had been put in survival mode. He clinched, walked Burns to the centre, and slowly reset. By the end of round one he was throwing back.
Round two was the turning point. Usman landed a left jab-cross combination that dropped Burns at the 2:30 mark. He followed with hammer fists, allowing Burns to scramble back to his feet before landing a second right hand that dropped Burns again at 3:45. Burns survived to the bell, but the round was Usman's at the 10-8 standard.
Round three lasted 34 seconds. Usman opened with a stiff jab that staggered Burns, followed with a counter right hand that dropped him, and finished with six ground strikes against the cage. Referee Herb Dean stopped it at 0:34 of round three. Usman's third successful welterweight title defense was complete.
In their post-fight interviews, both men embraced. "Gilbert is my brother," Usman said. "This was the hardest fight of my life." Burns, who would not get another title shot, returned to training with Usman within weeks. The 12-fight UFC win streak had extended to 13. Usman would defend the title four more times over the next two years before losing the belt to Leon Edwards via fifth-round head-kick KO at UFC 278.
Co-Main Event: Grasso vs. Barber
Alexa Grasso's flyweight debut was a quiet but important matchup. Maycee Barber had been 8-0 as a UFC prospect before tearing her ACL in her January 2020 loss to Roxanne Modafferi. Grasso, the Mexican strawweight who had been 11-4 in the UFC at 115 lbs, had decided that the move up to flyweight would suit her frame better.
Grasso fought a patient three rounds, picking her shots from range. Final scorecards: 29-28, 29-28, 29-28. It was the start of a five-fight winning streak at flyweight that would carry her to a title shot against Valentina Shevchenko at Noche UFC in September 2023 — a fight Grasso won by fourth-round submission to become the first Mexican-born UFC women's champion.
Full Results
Main Card (Pay-Per-View)
Kamaru Usman (c) def. Gilbert Burns — TKO (punches) — R3, 0:34 — Welterweight Title
Alexa Grasso def. Maycee Barber — Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) — Women's Flyweight
Kelvin Gastelum def. Ian Heinisch — Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27) — Middleweight
Ricky Simon def. Brian Kelleher — Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) — Bantamweight
Julian Marquez def. Maki Pitolo — Submission (anaconda choke) — R3, 4:17 — Middleweight
Preliminary Card (ESPN/ESPN+)
Anthony Hernandez def. Rodolfo Vieira — Submission (guillotine choke) — R2, 1:53 — Middleweight
Belal Muhammad def. Dhiego Lima — Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) — Welterweight
Polyana Viana def. Mallory Martin — Submission (armbar) — R1, 3:18 — Women's Strawweight
Chris Gutierrez def. Andre Ewell — Unanimous Decision (30-26, 29-28, 29-27) — Catchweight
Gabe Green def. Phil Rowe — Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) — Welterweight
Bonuses & Awards
All four bonuses at UFC 258 were Performance of the Night awards. No Fight of the Night was awarded.
🥇 Performance of the Night: Kamaru Usman — $50,000 for the third-round TKO of Gilbert Burns.
🥇 Performance of the Night: Julian Marquez — $50,000 for the third-round anaconda choke submission of Maki Pitolo.
🥇 Performance of the Night: Anthony Hernandez — $50,000 for the second-round guillotine choke submission of Rodolfo Vieira.
🥇 Performance of the Night: Polyana Viana — $50,000 for the first-round armbar submission of Mallory Martin.
Records & Milestones
• Usman's third successful UFC Welterweight Championship defense and 13th consecutive UFC win — the longest active UFC win streak at the time.
• First time Usman had been visibly hurt in a UFC fight since his unanimous-decision win over Demian Maia in May 2018.
• Alexa Grasso's UFC flyweight debut win became the start of a five-fight streak that culminated in her September 2023 title win over Valentina Shevchenko at Noche UFC.
• First UFC welterweight title fight at the APEX in the closed-door era.
• Belal Muhammad's three-round shutout of Dhiego Lima continued a slow climb that would eventually take him to a welterweight title win at UFC 304 in July 2024.
Legacy & Impact
UFC 258 is remembered as the most personally charged welterweight title fight of the Usman era and the night the champion proved he could absorb and recover from being hurt in championship competition. The come-from-behind finish silenced the lingering doubts that Usman could be susceptible to a heavy right hand — he had been put in the worst position of his career and turned it around within two rounds.
Kamaru Usman would extend his UFC win streak to 15 before losing the title to Leon Edwards at UFC 278 in August 2022 (fifth-round head-kick KO). His total welterweight title-fight run included six successful defenses over a span of three and a half years and confirmed him as one of the most dominant welterweight champions in UFC history.
For Gilbert Burns, the loss did not end his career. He went 4-3 in subsequent UFC bouts over the next four years, including a Fight of the Year nominee against Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 273. He never received another title shot. Friendship with Usman was maintained throughout.
For Alexa Grasso, UFC 258 was the start of one of the most under-the-radar championship-trajectory runs of the early 2020s. Less than three years after the Barber win, she was the women's flyweight champion.
FAQ
Were Usman and Burns really training partners?
Yes. Both fighters trained at Sanford MMA in Florida and had been close friends for years. They had been part of each other's title-fight preparation in earlier bouts. After the fight, both men embraced and Burns returned to training with Usman within weeks.
Why did Burns hurt Usman in round one?
A clean counter right hand at 28 seconds of round one. Usman over-committed on a jab; Burns timed the right hand on the slip. Usman was visibly stunned and fought defensively against the cage for thirty seconds before regaining his composure. It was the first time in his UFC career that Usman had been put in survival mode in a championship fight.
Did Burns ever get another title shot?
No. UFC 258 was Burns's lone UFC title-fight opportunity. He went 4-3 in subsequent UFC bouts over the next four years, including a Fight of the Year nominee against Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 273 (which Burns lost). He remained a top-five welterweight contender through 2024 but never received another title shot.
What happened to Alexa Grasso after UFC 258?
She went on a five-fight winning streak at flyweight that culminated in her title win over Valentina Shevchenko at Noche UFC in September 2023 (fourth-round submission) — the first Mexican-born UFC women's champion.
Was UFC 258 Usman's last UFC title defense?
No. Usman defended the title five times in total before losing it at UFC 278 in August 2022 to Leon Edwards (fifth-round head-kick KO). The defenses after UFC 258 were: Jorge Masvidal (rematch, UFC 261, April 2021), Colby Covington (rematch, UFC 268, November 2021), Leon Edwards (UFC 278, where Usman lost). UFC 258 was the third of his six championship-fight wins.
How does UFC 258 compare to UFC 257?
UFC 258 drew approximately 600,000 PPV buys — a steep dropoff from UFC 257 (1.6 million) just three weeks earlier. The gap reflected the absence of a Conor McGregor main event. UFC 258 was still a strong number for a non-marquee welterweight title fight.
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