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BJJ legend Gilbert Burns is now preparing to make his wrestling debut at RAF 13, 2026, where he will be facing off against Khamzat Chimaev in the co-main event. Although Burns might have significantly more experience in grappling in general, Chimaev has had much more in wrestling specifically. While this is Burns\u2019 first high-profile wrestling match and his promotional debut, Chimaev was one of the top freestyle wrestlers in Sweden and he\u2019s currently undefeated on the RAF mats. Chimaev holds a 2-0 record against fellow MMA fighters Tyron Woodley and Dillon Danis, with both of those wins coming by way of fall.<\/p>\n
Although this isn\u2019t new territory for Chimaev, Burns\u2019 general grappling and MMA background will have given him a lot of transferable skills. He was always known for having solid standing grappling during his Jiu-Jitsu career, and he took down many top MMA fighters throughout his career in the UFC. Burns has also already spent some time with Chimaev on the ground as well, because they actually faced each other at UFC 273 back in 2022. Although Chimaev did end up winning the fight, it was also the first time that any of his opponents had made it all the way to the judges\u2019 scorecards.<\/p>\n
Burns attempted multiple takedowns throughout the fight and wasn\u2019t able to land any of them, whereas Chimaev secured two of the three takedowns that he attempted. Chimaev wasn\u2019t able to control Burns for extended periods like he does with most fighters though and over all three rounds, he amassed a little over two minutes of control-time. The age difference will likely play a role as well though, as Chimaev is still in his prime at 32 while Burns has just turned 40. He did show that he\u2019s still at the top of his game recently though, submitting Horlando Monteiro with a rear-naked choke at UFC BJJ 9.<\/p>\n
RAF announced the news that Gilbert Burns is facing Khamzat Chimaev in a wrestling match in a recent post to their official Instagram account:<\/p>\n