After suffering defeat in five of his most recent six bouts, Darren Till, one of the most well-known names in British mixed martial arts, was cut from the roster of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
The mixed martial arts fighter, who was born in Liverpool, made his debut in the UFC in 2015. Since then, he has risen through the ranks of mixed martial arts’ most well-known organization, defeating the likes of Donald Cerrone and Steven Thompson en route to an eventual fight for the Welterweight Championship.
Till suffered his first loss in his mixed martial arts career during his fight against Tyrone Woodley at UFC 228, which took place in September 2018. The muay thai specialist was submitted through D’Arce choke in the second round of the fight.
The now 30-year-old fighter has been put through a grueling training regimen both inside and outside of the cage since that fateful night at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.
After suffering a defeat at the hands of Jorge Masvidal in front of his hometown fans at Liverpool’s Echo Arena, Darren Till took the decision to move up 15 pounds to the middleweight division in an effort to reignite his hopes of winning a title in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
Till’s first fight at 185 pounds resulted in a split-decision victory against veteran Kelvin Gastelum. However, further defeats at the hands of Robert Whittaker and Derek Brunson resulted in the fighter being withdrawn from contention for the Middleweight title.
In UFC 282, which took place last December, the former welterweight championship candidate competed against Dricus Du Plessis, a rising star in the middleweight division, in what appeared to be something of a “last chance saloon.”
The move to Sweden to train with the unstoppable grappling phenom Khamzat Chimaev and Till’s pre-fight comments suggested he was willing to make the required sacrifices to get his career back on track to UFC greatness.
“From my point of view I just think that I’ll be quicker on the feet and lighter than him and I think I can really punish him in there, landing jabs on the nose. I want to keep my cards close to my chest”.
Despite the Liverpool-born fighter’s best efforts and despite what appeared to be a serious knee injury, South African Du Plessis choked out Till in the third round, ending what could have been a defining moment in the British fighter’s career.
Till’s problems extend beyond the confines of the ring, as evidenced by a high-profile arrest in Spain and a conviction for drunk driving in Sweden.
The former Welterweight contender responded on Twitter to the news of his expulsion from the UFC roster by stating that he had been the one to initiate the contract release. He then added that: “I’m not going anywhere, got big plans to execute and I’ll be back”.
