Mike Malott earned the biggest win of his mixed martial arts career Saturday night in Winnipeg.
The Canadian welterweight stopped Gilbert Burns via technical knockout in the featured bout of a UFC Fight Night event.
The 170-pounders traded heavy punches and kicks for 2.5 rounds until Malott levelled Burns with a clubbing left hook and again with a right hand midway through the third round to the delight of the home fans.
It was Malott’s first UFC main event spotlight as he became the first Canadian fighter to headline a UFC event in Canada since Rory MacDonald in 2016. Malott joined MacDonald and Georges St-Pierre as the only Canadian fighters in UFC history to main event a Canadian card.
The Burlington, Ont., native improved to 7-1 in the UFC with the win and will crack the welterweight contender rankings next week since Burns entered the match ranked No. 11.
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Malott has won four in a row overall. He didn’t call out anyone for his next bout but instead showed respect to Burns by calling him “a legend.”
Brazil’s Burns, 39, was in tears after the match. He hadn’t fought since being knocked out by Michael Morales in one round 11 months ago and may not fight again in the UFC.
“I think that’s it,” an emotional Burns said after losing his fifth consecutive fight and laying gloves in the cage as a symbol of retirement.
Burns fell to 7-7 since his move from lightweight to welterweight in 2019. The jiu-jitsu black belt is a one-time title challenger at 170 pounds with notable wins over Jorge Masvidal, Neil Magny, Stephen Thompson, Demian Maia and former champion Tyron Woodley. He also shared the cage with UFC champions Khamzat Chimaev, Jack Della Maddalena, Belal Muhammad and Kamaru Usman.
Charles Jourdain and Kyler Phillips went the distance in a spirited co-main event contest in the bantamweight division. Beloeil, Que.’s Jourdain extended his winning streak to three in a row by edging out a two-rounds-to-one unanimous decision.
Jourdain, 30, is now 3-0 since moving down from 145 to 135 pounds in 2024. He debuted in the division with guillotine choke submission wins over Victor Henry and Davey Grant. Meanwhile, Phillips has lost three consecutive decisions.
Mandel Nallo made quite the impression in his two-minute UFC debut but came up short after getting caught by fellow lightweight Jai Herbert in a fast-paced fight.
Nallo, who was born in Vancouver, lives in Toronto and trains at Montreal’s Tristar Gym, had the Winnipeg crowd cheering loudly early as he rocked Herbert and had the Englishman on the back foot. Herbert countered with a flush right that dropped Nallo, who survived briefly before Herbert put him away.
All three Canadians to debut Saturday lost. Before Nallo stepped into the cage, middleweight Julien Leblanc and bantamweight Jamie Siraj were stopped on the prelims earlier in the night.
Jasmine Jasudavicius of St. Catharines, Ont., got back in the win column thanks to takedowns and control time in a unanimous decision win over Brazil’s Karine Silva.
Jasudavicius said after defeating Silva that she wasn’t happy with the performance and would’ve liked to get a finish. The 37-year-old entered the weekend as the No. 7-ranked contender at 125 pounds and said she wants somebody above her in the women’s flyweight rankings next. Jasudavicius has fought in Canada in six of her past nine UFC appearances.
The popular Niagara Top Team member and a teammate of Malott’s was aiming to bounce back from a 74-second loss to Manon Fiorot in Vancouver in October
Lightweights Thiago Moises and Gauge Young kicked off the main card with Young getting his hand raised via decision after 15 minutes.
Saturday’s card was the organization’s third event held in Winnipeg and first since 2017. It was the sixth UFC event located in Canada since 2023 and the 37th all-time.