In the past two years, UFC middleweight Darren Till has withdrawn from three planned bouts. After a post on Inststagram yesterday, fans are concerned it may soon be four.
Social media was ablaze after Till shared an image of what looks like a severely compromised eye, sending fans into panic mode believing the injury would once again force ‘The Gorilla’ out of his upcoming bout opposite Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 282 on December 10.
Judging by the light-hearted caption, it seems as if Till himself isn’t quite as concerned as the fanbase is.
“Solid days work,” he wrote, tagging Bangtao strength and conditioning coach Adam Wood and PFL playoff contender Brendan Loughnane with whom he’s training.
As it stands, Till hasn’t competed in over a year, his last bout a defeat at the hands of Derek Brunson in October of 2021. The former highly touted English prospect’s recent record sits at one win and four losses in his last five fights.
The AllStar MMA roundup
- UFC 281: Will Israel Adesanya be obsessed with revenge against Alex Pereira at UFC 281?
- Roxanne Modafferi: My experience as a UFC fighter in Abu Dhabi
- Feature: Are UFC fans inconsiderate? ‘You lose. You suck’
The best of the rest
- Georges St-Pierre, now freed of UFC contract, says ‘never say never’ to combat sports return – MMAFighting.com
- What makes UFC prospect Bo Nickal such ‘a super special athlete’? Coach Mike Brown explains – MMAJunkie.com
- Robert Whittaker thinks Khamzat Chimaev is a ‘terrible fight’ for Colby Covington – MMAJunkie.com
- UFC champ Islam Makhachev visits Chechen dictator Ramzan Kadyrov – BloodyElbow.com
- Jake Paul responds to accusations of fight-rigging in Anderson Silva win: ‘I lose faith in my generation’ – MMAFighting.com
The soapbox
The UFC fighter Halloween menagerie:
The morning view
JHK catches up with Brady Hesitand ahead of UFC Vegas 65:
Chael works out the UFC lightweight title picture in real-time:
Luke Thomas has an interesting chat with Beneil Dariush:
Kickboxing champion Gabriel Varga discusses why most UFC champs are over the age of 30:
Done deals
Tuesday
- Tyson Pedro to fight Zhang Mingyang at UFC 284 on February 11th (per Chris Presnell)
- Ismael Bonfim will fight Terrance McKinney at UFC 283 on January 21st (per MMA Fighting)
- David Onama to fight Jarno Errens at UFC Vegas 67 on January 14th (per Marcel Dorff)
- Yusaku Kinoshita to fight Adam Fugitt at UFC Seoul on February 4th (per Nolan King)
- Jack Jenkins to fight Don Shainis at UFC 284 on February 11th (per Iridium Sports)
- Dan Argueta will fight Isaac Dulgarian at UFC Vegas 67 on January 14th (per Mathias Meade)
Monday
- Ion Cutelaba to fight Kennedy Nzechukwu at UFC Vegas 65 on November 19th (per MMA Junkie)
Roster Watch
Fighters removed this week:
- Jason Witt
- Darian Weeks
- Cameron VanCamp
- Jesse Ronson
- Charlie Ontiveros
- Majored Mustafaev
- Louis Cosce
- Misha Cirkunov
Fighters Added this week:
- None to note
Credit to UFC Roster Watch
On this day in MMA…
On the 1st of November, 2014, a 19-year-old Paddy Pimblett won his seventh professional MMA bout at Cage Warriors 73 in Newcastle, England.
As is tradition, Pimblett was rocked by the relatively green Stephen Martin to start the first round. He hit the canvas and found himself in severe trouble with his opponent reigning ground and pound.
Pimblett rallied and put his grappling skills on display, forcing a scramble to get himself to safety. After regaining his composure, Pimblett let loose with an elbow that opened up a centimetres long gash on Martin’s forehead just before the horn, forcing the doctor to stop the fight between rounds. It would have been a bloodbath had the fight continued.
In his following fight, Pimblett would challenge for his first title as a professional mixed martial artist.
