Kevin Burns (fighter)

Kevin Burns
Born March 3, 1980
Carroll, Iowa, United States
Other names The Fire
Nationality American
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight 170 lb (77 kg; 12 st)
Division Welterweight
Reach 74 in (190 cm)
Fighting out of Des Moines, Iowa, United States
Team Grudge Training Center
Rank Brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu
Black belt in Tae Kwon Do
Mixed martial arts record
Total 19
Wins 12
By knockout 3
By submission 8
By decision 1
Losses 7
By knockout 4
By decision 3
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Kevin Bertrand Burns (born March 3, 1980) is an American mixed martial artist currently competing in the Welterweight division. A professional competitor since 2006, he has formerly competed for the UFC.

Background

Originally from Carroll, Iowa, Burns was a talented football player, competing at the collegiate level. Burns later began training in Tae Kwon Do at the age of 18, before transitioning into Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and then finally mixed martial arts.[1]

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

With only ten months of training, Burns made his amateur MMA debut, defeating Josh Neer. Burns took a year off after the win but returned when Neer called him out for a rematch. Burns took his first loss in the bout.

Four years later, Burns won his professional debut against Demi Deeds. He won his next fight before losing to Jason High. The loss did not slow down Burns, as he racked up three more wins. With the wins he earned a four-fight deal with the UFC.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

At UFC 85 Burns made his debut for the UFC, earning the upset win over Roan Carneiro. He submitted Roan in the second round and was awarded Submission of the Night.

During his fight with Anthony Johnson in UFC: Silva vs. Irvin, he repeatedly poked Johnson in the eyes, for which he received four separate warnings by the referee, Steve Mazzagatti. In the third round, Johnson fell to the ground writhing in pain after an exchange with Burns, and Mazzagatti called the fight to protect Johnson, who was clearly unable to defend himself. Only after seeing the replay from a different camera angle was it seen that the reason for Johnson falling to the ground was due to one of Burns' open handed jabs landing deep into his eye.[2] After some confusion, Steve Mazzagatti stopped the bout as a no contest. After the fight Johnson appealed the decision as being poked in the eye was a foul, but it was ultimately rejected due to lack of remedy.[3] Burns has claimed that the eye-jabs were not intentional and due to a prior broken hand, which he states forced him to punch with a looser hand.

Johnson defeated Burns with a third-round knockout in their rematch at The Ultimate Fighter 8 Finale.

Burns was defeated by Chris Lytle via unanimous decision in a back and forth war at the The Ultimate Fighter 9 Finale. The fight did prove to be positive as Burns was given an extra $25,000 for earning Fight of the Night.

Burns lost to TJ Grant via first round TKO at UFC 107. After losing three straight bouts, Burns was released from the UFC.

Mixed martial arts record

Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
style="background: #ffdddd; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="table-no2" |Loss 12–7 James Wood Decision (unanimous) VFC 38: Roberts vs. Arocho December 15, 2012 5 5:00 Ralston, Nebraska, United States For the VFC Welterweight Championship.
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 12–6 Mark Stoddard Submission (shoulder choke) MCC 43: High Octane October 12, 2012 1 2:52 Des Moines, Iowa, United States
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 11–6 Mason Temiquel Submission (rear-naked choke) MCC 42: Lund vs. Schmauss August 3, 2012 1 3:16 Des Moines, Iowa, United States
style="background: #ffdddd; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="table-no2" |Loss 10–6 Tom Speer Decision (split) Brutaal: Fight Night May 11, 2012 3 5:00 Tama, Iowa, United States
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 10–5 Eddie Larrea Submission (rear-naked choke) MCC 37: Thanksgiving Throwdown November 23, 2011 1 1:09 Des Moines, Iowa, United States
style="background: #ffdddd; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="table-no2" |Loss 9–5 Koffi Adzitso KO (punches) ZarMMA: Fight Night November 12, 2010 1 1:54 Layton, Utah, United States
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 9–4 Kalel Robinson Submission (arm-triangle choke) MCC 28: Impact August 6, 2010 1 3:18 Des Moines, Iowa, United States
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 8–4 Sean Huffman Decision (unanimous) MCC 25: Inferno March 13, 2010 3 5:00 Des Moines, Iowa, United States
style="background: #ffdddd; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="table-no2" |Loss 7–4 TJ Grant TKO (punches) UFC 107 December 12, 2009 1 4:57 Memphis, Tennessee, United States
style="background: #ffdddd; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="table-no2" |Loss 7–3 Chris Lytle Decision (unanimous) The Ultimate Fighter 9 Finale June 20, 2009 3 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Fight of the Night.
style="background: #ffdddd; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="table-no2" |Loss 7–2 Anthony Johnson KO (head kick) The Ultimate Fighter 8 Finale December 13, 2008 3 0:28 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 7–1 Anthony Johnson TKO (eye injury) UFC Fight Night: Silva vs. Irvin July 19, 2008 3 3:45 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Johnson poked in the eye. Could not continue.
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 6–1 Roan Carneiro Submission (triangle choke) UFC 85 June 7, 2008 2 2:53 London, England Submission of the Night.
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 5–1 Bobby Voelker KO (punch) VFC 23: Validation May 9, 2008 1 0:30 Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 4–1 Steve Schneider Submission (triangle choke) GFC 2 December 15, 2007 2 4:13 Des Moines, Iowa, United States
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 3–1 Sean Westbrook Submission (rear-naked choke) GFC 1: Genesis April 20, 2007 1 3:22 Des Moines, Iowa, United States
style="background: #ffdddd; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="table-no2" |Loss 2–1 Jason High TKO (doctor stoppage) VFC 18: Hitmen February 16, 2007 2 5:00 Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 2–0 Matt Delanoit Submission (armbar) VFC 17: Predators December 9, 2006 1 3:29 Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 1–0 Demi Deeds TKO (punches) Greensparks: Full Contact Fighting 1 August 19, 2006 1 3:58 Clive, Iowa, United States

References

External links