After he moved down to featherweight from lightweight and secured a new multi-fight contract that has him financially happy, no. 13 ranked Edson Barboza is rejuvenated and ready to go to battle with no. 9 ranked featherweight contender Shane Burgos.
Barboza split his last two fights. He lost a controversial decision in his featherweight debut against no. 8 ranked Dan Ige at UFC on ESPN 8 in May 2020. But Barboza rebounded from that loss, however, with a decisive victory over Makwan Amirkhani in the co-main event of UFC Fight Island 5 in Oct. 2020.
With Shane Burgos in front of him, Barboza looks forward to this matchup as much as he does.
“I’m a fighter but I’m a big fan. I love to watch some good fights, and I know it’s gonna be a really really good fight,” Barboza said to ESPN. “I’m very excited. Shane’s one of the best. I’m one of the best. It’s gonna be a big war.”
Barboza then provided his thoughts on what Burgos has to offer as an opponent.
“He’s a great striker. He has great boxing, head movement a lot and a lot of pressure. Yeah, man, he’s a great fighter,” Barboza said. “Like I sayid, he’s number nine in the world. It’s gonna be a good fight. I’m very excited. Like you fans, I’m very excited.”
With a new contract and an opportunity to climb the featherweight ranks, Barboza is ready to kick off the main card of UFC 262.
