Michael Bisping still has confidence in Darren Till’s ability to snag UFC gold.
Till’s name was red hot leading to his September 2018 showdown with Tyron Woodley. At the time, Woodley was the UFC Welterweight Champion and Till had a ton of momentum. “The Gorilla” ended up being submitted by Woodley in the second round. While some chalked it up to too much, too soon for Till, he followed that up with a brutal knockout loss to Jorge Masvidal.
Till once had an unbeaten record of 17-0-1. He has gone 1-3 in his last four outings. Some feel it’s possible that Till hasn’t hit his prime yet given that he’s not even 30 years old. That’s the feeling Bisping gets.
During an interview with The Schmo, Bisping expressed his belief that Till will someday win a UFC championship.
“I love the guy. I think he’s phenomenal. I love everything about him. I love the way he fights, I love the way he carries himself, I love how raw and honest that he is. And I think he’s championship material. Darren’s only [28] years old. I mean, that’s crazy to think the success that he’s had…
“He’s lost a few fights, but, alright, other than the Masvidal one—everybody gets caught here and there—they’ve been razor close. I mean, that fight (against) Robert Whittaker was so close. I think it came down to that takedown in the 5th round. And then when you see Whittaker and what he did to Gastelum and how good he’s looking and when he beat Cannonier, I think that reinforces Darren to where he’s at and how close he is to being the champ. And I honestly believe, truly, hand on heart, that at some point in his career, he will be middleweight champion of the world.”
Till is expected to meet Derek Brunson in the main event of a UFC Fight Night card on Aug. 14. As it stands now, Till is the number seven-ranked UFC middleweight, while Brunson is ahead of him in the fifth spot.