The welterweight clash between Gilbert Burns and Khamzat Chimaev has quickly established itself as the bout that could steal the show at UFC 273 on Saturday night, with the attention given to the matchup equalling and, in some quarters, even surpassing the two title fights at the top of the card.
That pre-fight buzz was there for all to see at the press conference ahead of the event, where Chimaev and Burns went back and forth on the mic to raise the anticipation ahead of their main card clash in Jacksonville.
There were some tense exchanges between the co-main event stars, too, as bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling, complete with an array of props, and interim champ Petr Yan exchanged verbal barbs ahead of their title rematch.
The simmering rivalries in those two bouts contrasted markedly with the main event, where Alexander Volkanovski and Chan Sung Jung were courteous and respectful to each other, while women’s strawweight rivals Mackenzie Dern and Tecia Torres also kept it classy, though you could see from one notable exchange that both women will relish the test of facing each other this weekend.
Check out the best of the pre-fight press conference via the video below.
