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The UFC was back in Las Vegas for another Fight Night last night. In the headliner, a new star may well have been created at 170 pounds.
UFC Fight Night: Gilbert Burns vs. Michael Morales lost its co-headliner on late notice, but overall, it was a fun event with plenty of finishes. So with a handful of talking points, this one was better than your average APEX fare.
Here are five takeaways from UFC Fight Night: Gilbert Burns vs. Michael Morales.
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#5. The UFC should've dished out more $50k bonuses to send a clear message to the roster
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The best thing about last night's event was undoubtedly the fact that just four of the eleven fights on the card ended via decision. The other seven all ended before the final buzzer, with most of them finishing in violent fashion, with a nice range of submissions and knockouts, too.
Michael Morales and Denise Gomes, who ended their fights with impressive TKO stoppages, both deserved their $50k bonuses. However, the UFC should almost certainly have handed out more at this show, if only to send a message to the rest of the roster.
Dana White's old adage that fighters should "never leave it in the hands of the judges" is easy to say, but finishing a foe in the octagon isn't easy. Therefore, the promotion should look for any kind of encouragement for fighters to do it.
Handing out four or five extra bonuses at an event like this wouldn't cost the UFC much, maybe $300k at worst. If that could help to avoid an event like the Fight Night at the APEX on April 5, which saw eight bouts go the distance, then it'd surely be worth it.
#4. Jared Gordon's big knockout was marred by some horrible officiating
The fighter most unfortunate to miss out on a $50k bonus last night was undoubtedly Jared Gordon. 'Flash' got back into the winner's circle with one of the best knockouts of 2025 thus far, turning the lights out on Thiago Moises midway through the first round.
However, his knockout was marred by a poor bit of officiating by referee Kerry Hatley.
Gordon's knockout has been compared to the legendary one scored by Dan Henderson on Michael Bisping. Like Henderson, Gordon used an overhand right to deck his foe and followed with a flying shot as well as some extra punches.
However, Henderson's knockout came so quickly that referee Mario Yamasaki simply didn't have a chance to stop his follow-up assault. Hatley, though, was slow in stepping in and when he did, he just wasn't forceful enough, meaning Moises ate a few entirely pointless shots.
It isn't like the veteran ref doesn't have much UFC experience, too, as he's been around for well over a decade. We can therefore chalk it down to human error, but that didn't help Moises, unfortunately.
#3. Mairon Santos showed new wrinkles and is a man to watch at 155 pounds
While he didn't score the finish he would've been after, it was hard not to be impressed by Mairon Santos in last night's late-notice co-headliner.
Santos and opponent Sodiq Yusuff took the spot when Paul Craig vs. Rodolfo Bellato was cancelled on the night, and it was 'The Legend' who made the most of the extra spotlight.
The TUF winner outduelled 'Super Sodiq' for three straight rounds in their lightweight clash, but he also showed some new wrinkles in his game, too.
Santos had his most success in the clinch, as he bullied Yusuff against the fence and prevented him from ever unleashing his famed power shots.
Given that the Brazilian had previously fought at 145 pounds, it was an impressive show of strength, although it's worth remembering Yusuff was also moving up in weight.
Overall, though, Santos scored 22 strikes to the head compared to just nine for Yusuff, making this a strong win. He's got a lot of potential and is well worth keeping an eye on in the future.
#2. Even in a losing effort, Julian Erosa remains a true action hero
It came as no surprise when it was announced after last night's event that the featherweight bout between Melquizael Costa and Julian Erosa had won the Fight of the Night award.
After all, Erosa had been involved in several crazy fights in the UFC before, with eleven of his previous 14 bouts ending via finish. If anything, quite how last night's bonus award was only his third is anyone's guess.
Unfortunately for 'Juicy J', he came out second-best last night despite a heroic effort. Costa hurt him in the first round with a flurry of strikes, and then continued where he left off in the second, fighting through two takedowns to hurt Erosa.
However, the third round saw 'Juicy J' come roaring back, pushing Costa to the limit and drawing him into a wild brawl that was probably not worth the risk in partaking.
Costa was able to pull through, though, and won the fight, breaking Erosa's three-fight win streak.
'Juicy J', however, will not really lose anything despite coming out on the wrong end of things here. Costa will climb the ladder further - he is on a four-fight win streak himself - but Erosa's status as a UFC action hero is more than cemented at this stage, and this was more evidence of it.
Essentially, he'll have a spot on the roster for as long as he wants it if he continues to fight like this.
#1. Michael Morales is absolutely for real
Last night's headliner saw Michael Morales firmly establish himself as a genuine threat to the UFC welterweight title. The unbeaten Ecuadorian made light work of Gilbert Burns, claiming his sixth win in the octagon and extending his overall record to 18-0 with a first-round TKO.
Burns had lost his last three fights, but had pushed Sean Brady, Jack Della Maddalena, and Belal Muhammad to their limit in the process.
That wasn't the case with Morales, though. The Ecuadorian looked far bigger than 'Durinho', walked him down and hurt him with numerous right hands before dropping him twice to put him away.
Essentially, it's hard not to view Morales as a genuine title threat at 170 pounds after this performance. The queue for a title shot is ridiculously long right now, but the Ecuadorian will probably fancy his chances against anyone based on this showing.
Hopefully, the UFC can get him back into action quickly because this was one of the more exciting performances of 2025 to date.
