Herbert Burns
“The Blaze”
Source: ufc.comBrazilian third-degree black belt from Niterói. IBJJF no-gi gold in 2018, eight of eleven MMA wins by submission, now teaching at his own Florida academy.
Biography
Sources for this profile
Wikipedia, «Herbert Burns», lest 2026-09-20 (lopende oppdatert artikkel).(opens in a new tab)
His full name is given as Herbert Mitchell Pontes Burns, and his date of birth as 2 February 1988.
Where in the source: Herbert Mitchell Pontes Burns (born February 2, 1988) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist
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He is Brazilian.
Where in the source: is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who has competed in the featherweight divisions
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He was born in Niterói, in the state of Rio de Janeiro.
Where in the source: Burns was born in Niterói, Brazil, in 1988.
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He is a third-degree black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, graded under Rafael "Fofitio" Barros and under his own brother Gilbert Burns.
Where in the source: Rank 3rd degree black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu [ 6 ] under Rafael "Fofitio" Barros and Gilbert Burns
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His black belt carries three degrees.
Where in the source: Rank 3rd degree black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
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Gilbert and Frederick, his two elder brothers, are jiu-jitsu black belts as well.
Where in the source: He has two older brothers, Gilbert and Frederick, who both are also jiu-jitsu black belts.
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Before jiu-jitsu he played football and trained Shotokan karate under his father, Herbert Sr., and won a state championship in karate.
Where in the source: He played soccer and trained Shotokan karate under his father Herbert Sr. in his early childhood, eventually winning a state championship in the latter sport.
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He began training Brazilian jiu-jitsu at the age of ten, starting at the same time as his brothers.
Where in the source: Herbert started training Brazilian jiu-jitsu at the same time with his brothers when he was ten years old.
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Competing for Brazil at black belt in 2018 he took gold in the middleweight division at the American National No-Gi Championship and bronze at -76 kg at the Pan No-Gi Championship in New York.
Where in the source: Men's Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Representing Brazil American Nogi Championship Gold medal – first place 2018 Middleweight (Black) [ 9 ] Pan American Nogi Championship Bronze medal – third place 2018 New York, USA -76 kg [ 10 ]
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At the Dallas Fall Open No-Gi Championship in 2018 he won gold both in the black-belt middleweight division and in the open-weight absolute division.
Where in the source: Dallas Fall Open Nogi Championship Gold medal – first place 2018 Middleweight (Black) [ 11 ] Gold medal – first place 2018 Absolute (Black) [ 11 ]
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The medal table also lists gold at -76 kg at the Miami Spring Open No-Gi Championship, dated 2018 in the table.
Where in the source: Miami Spring Open Nogi Championship Gold medal – first place 2018 -76 kg (Black)
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On 2 November 2024 he met Pat Sabatini at Fury Pro Grappling 11 and lost on golden score in overtime.
Where in the source: Burns competed against Pat Sabatini at Fury Pro Grappling 11 on November 2, 2024. He lost the match by golden score in overtime.
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His team affiliations are listed as Evolve MMA from 2013 to 2015, Kill Cliff FC from 2017, and The Way Martial Arts from 2022.
Where in the source: Team Evolve MMA (2013–2015) [ 3 ] Kill Cliff FC (2017–present) [ 4 ] The Way Martial Arts (2022–present) [ 5 ]
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He won his UFC debut, against Nate Landwehr on 25 January 2020, by first-round knockout and took a Performance of the Night bonus.
Where in the source: He won the fight via knockout in round one, for which he also earned the Performance of the Night bonus.
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On 10 October 2024 it was reported that he had been taken off the UFC roster.
Where in the source: On October 10, 2024, it was reported that Burns was removed from the UFC roster.
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Sherdog, «Herbert "The Blaze" Burns MMA Stats, Pictures, News, Videos, Biography», kamprekord, lest 2026-09-20.(opens in a new tab)
Sherdog's fighter record gives his date of birth as 2 February 1988.
Where in the source: AGE 38 / Feb 2, 1988
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Sherdog lists his nickname as "The Blaze".
Where in the source: Herbert Burns " The Blaze "
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His professional MMA debut, on 25 February 2012, ended in 25 seconds by triangle armbar.
Where in the source: win Saulo Eduardo da Silva Only FC - Only Fight Championship Feb / 25 / 2012 Submission (Triangle Armbar) 1 0:25
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Eight of his eleven professional MMA wins came by submission, against one by knockout and two by decision.
Where in the source: Wins 11 KO / TKO 1 9% SUBMISSIONS 8 73% DECISIONS 2 18%
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Sherdog records the Minner bout on 6 August 2019 as a first-round submission by triangle armbar at 2:29.
Where in the source: win Darrick Minner Dana White's Contender Series - Season 3, Episode 7 Aug / 06 / 2019 Submission (Triangle Armbar) Herb Dean VIEW PLAY-BY-PLAY 1 2:29
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UFC, «Herbert Burns» — offisiell utoverside, lest 2026-09-20.(opens in a new tab)
His fighting nickname is "The Blaze".
Where in the source: Featherweight Division Not Fighting "The Blaze" Herbert Burns
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The promoter's own athlete page lists his fighting style as jiu-jitsu and his gym as Sanford MMA.
Where in the source: Place of Birth Niterói, Brazil Trains at Sanford MMA Fighting style Jiu-Jitsu
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The promoter's own statistics page gives the same split: eight submission wins, two decisions and one knockout.
Where in the source: Win by Method KO/TKO 1 (9%) DEC 2 (18%) SUB 8 (73%)
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The promoter's athlete page currently lists his status as "Not Fighting".
Where in the source: Status Not Fighting Place of Birth Niterói, Brazil
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Ali Khaled, «Grappler Herbert Burns will bring his jiu-jitsu style to MMA event in Dubai», The National, 27.08.2014.(opens in a new tab)
In his own words to The National in 2014 he had trained jiu-jitsu since he was ten.
Where in the source: I stated training jiu-jitsu since I was 10 years old
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His first competition came a month after he started competing — a mixed yellow-and-white-belt division, where he finished second.
Where in the source: He had his first fight one month after he started to compete, a mixed competition for yellow and white belts. He finished second.
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A month after that first competition he was entered in a national championship, and says he has competed continuously since.
Where in the source: A month after that, I was at the national championship
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Asked in 2014 what his main weapon was, he answered only that he was a grappler.
Where in the source: I’m a grappler,” is all he says on the subject
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FloGrappling, «Herbert Burns» — resultatdatabase for grappling, lest 2026-09-20.(opens in a new tab)
FloGrappling's results database records four grappling matches for him, all in 2018, with two wins and two losses.
Where in the source: Favorite Herbert Burns 2-2-0 (W-L-D) Results Events Videos 2018 2-2-0 (W-L-D)
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On 30 March 2018 he beat R. Semiglia at Fight 2 Win Pro 68 at 160 lb by calf slicer.
Where in the source: 03/30 W Replay Calf Slicer R. Semiglia 160lbs Fight 2 Win Pro 68
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On 28 June 2018 he lost on points to L. Valente in the lightweight division at the 2018 American National IBJJF Championship.
Where in the source: 06/28 L Replay Points L. Valente Lightweight 2018 American National IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu Championship
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On 12 October 2018 he beat J. Gracia by decision at 160 lb at Fight 2 Win Pro 89.
Where in the source: 10/12 W Replay Decision J. Gracia 160lbs Fight 2 Win Pro 89
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Guilherme Cruz, «Ready for Titan FC debut, Herbert Burns opens up on "weird" relationship with ONE Championship», MMA Fighting, 20.12.2018.(opens in a new tab)
A December 2018 report says that over the preceding twelve months he had been entering grappling and gi tournaments in the United States rather than fighting.
Where in the source: spent the last year competing in jiu-jitsu and grappling tournaments in the United States
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He signed with ONE Championship in 2013 with a 1-0 record and won his first five bouts there in under two years.
Where in the source: signed with ONE in 2013 as a 1-0 prospect and went on to win five in a row in less than two years
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While under that contract he trained mainly at the gym in Asia, and after beating Timofey Nastyukhin in September 2015 he began looking for another base for his camps.
Where in the source: Burns did most of his training at the gym in Asia, but decided to find another home for his camps following his win over Timofey Nastyukhin in Sept. 2015.
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Graciemag Newsroom, «Herbert Burns on moving to Florida, seeking redemption in the cage», Graciemag, 07.05.2017 (arkivkopi 07.03.2021).(opens in a new tab)
In May 2017 he moved to Florida to train at Combat Club, where his brother Gilbert was already based.
Where in the source: He has packed and set off for Florida, where he will start training at Combat Club alongside his brother, UFC fighter Gilbert Durinho.
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Describing the coaching staff he was joining, he said Greg Jones handled wrestling and his brother Gilbert taught the jiu-jitsu.
Where in the source: For the wrestling side of things, there is Greg Jones — a three-time NCAA champion. And there is my brother, Gilbert Durinho, teaching the BJJ part.
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At the same time he said he intended to stay active in jiu-jitsu alongside his cage career.
Where in the source: Herbert says he plans to stay active in BJJ
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The Way Martial Arts, «About The Way Martial Arts», akademiets egen side, lest 2026-09-20.(opens in a new tab)
He founded The Way Martial Arts in Lantana, Florida, together with Joe Cianciotto.
Where in the source: Founded in Lantana, FL by Herbert Burns and Joe Cianciotto, The Way Martial Arts was built on the belief that technical excellence and a welcoming environment are not opposites
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Lance!, «Lutador do UFC, Herbert Burns inaugura academia propria na Florida: "sempre tive esse sonho"», 28.03.2022.(opens in a new tab)
He opened The Way Martial Arts in Lantana, Florida, in the week before 28 March 2022.
Where in the source: O irmão de Gilbert Durinho inaugurou na semana passada na cidade de Lantana, na Flórida, a "The Way Martial Arts"
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The academy was set up to offer jiu-jitsu, kickboxing and fitness, and was framed as a place where parents and children could train together.
Where in the source: A academia, que irá oferecer aulas de Jiu-Jitsu, Kickboxing e fitness, será um espaço voltado para a família.
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He said he teaches the professional team at Sanford MMA, used to teach the professionals at Evolve, and has taught in other countries in Asia and Europe as well as in Brazil.
Where in the source: Eu dou aula para o time profissional da Sanford MMA, dava aula para os profissionais da Evolve, já dei aulas em outros países da Ásia e da Europa, além do Brasil.
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He said he would also train jiu-jitsu at his own academy, and teach there mainly in the evenings.
Where in the source: mas também vou treinar Jiu-Jitsu aqui na minha academia
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He had not fought since August 2020 because of a knee ligament injury that required surgery, and he used the long recovery to open the academy he had wanted for years.
Where in the source: Herbert Burns não luta MMA desde agosto de 2020, quando sofreu uma lesão ligamentar no joelho que o forçou a passar por uma cirurgia.
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Thomas Gerbasi, «A diversao de Herbert Burns comeca agora», UFC.com.br, 24.08.2019.(opens in a new tab)
On the Contender Series on 6 August 2019 he finished Darrick Minner with a triangle at 2:29 of the first round and earned a UFC contract.
Where in the source: acabou com o duelo com um triângulo aos 2m29s do 1º round
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Ahead of that bout the promoter's own Brazilian desk framed it as his jiu-jitsu black belt against an opponent with nineteen submission wins.
Where in the source: Burns colocaria em jogo sua faixa-preta de jiu-jítsu contra um oponente com 19 vitórias por finalização
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He said opponents normally avoid going to the ground with him, and that he took this fight precisely because the opponent would not.
Where in the source: Normalmente os adversários fogem na hora de lutar no chão comigo
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Ag. Fight, «Herbert Burns ve pressao no "Contender" maior do que no UFC e cogita "copiar" irmao», ESPN Brasil, 15.10.2019.(opens in a new tab)
In 2019 he said he had always been at a good level and had beaten hard opponents using his jiu-jitsu.
Where in the source: Sempre tive um nível bom, enfrentei caras duros usando meu jiu-jitsu.
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He described the ambition he and his brother shared as carrying the family banner and representing Brazil and jiu-jitsu in the UFC.
Where in the source: Queremos levar essa bandeira da família para representar o Brasil e o jiu-jitsu no UFC
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He said his first two career fights were taken at short notice — one in Brazil on three days and his MMA debut on five.
Where in the source: Uma no Brasil foi com três dias e a minha estreia (no MMA), com cinco.
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