Darren Till open to fighting Sean Strickland next time out: ‘I’m still fighting the top and that’s how it is’
Darren Till knows he is one of the best fighters in the world and wants to prove that.
Till is coming off a submission loss to Derek Brunson back in September, which was his second loss in a row as he also dropped a decision to Robert Whittaker in July of 2020. The fight against Whittaker was super close and many had scored it 48-47 for Whittaker. That fight proved just how good the Englishman can be, and he knows that is true.
“I know my future looks very, very bright… Literally, (against Robert Whittaker) I lost the fight on one takedown, and in my opinion right now, Whittaker is probably the best middleweight, one of the best. I know where I’m at and people who know, know where I’m at. All the haters, the haters will soon turn into fans. It’s just the way that this game goes,” Till said on Michael Bisping’s podcast (via MMAFighting).
Entering the fight against Derek Brunson, Darren Till claims he partially tore his ACL which will keep him out of action for several months. Yet, he is hoping to return in March, on the rumored UFC London card on March 19 and likes the idea of Sean Strickland as his next opponent.
“The UFC, they said to me, ‘Darren, we’re with you, we know what your potential is, we really love you, you’re always there for us, you’ll fight anyone anytime. You’re a man of the company,’ and I said of course,” Till said. “But they’re like, ‘Who do you want to fight?’ and I said Jared Cannonier is a good one. ‘Oh really? Jared already?’ Of course.
“There were a few options they threw out to me. One fight I really liked was Sean Strickland. They offered him as well, and I actually said to Sean – because I’ve seen him a few times at the UFC – I said, ‘Sean, if you want to get it on at some point, let’s do it because I think you’re a good fighter, I think it would be a good fight.’ So listen, I’m still fighting the top and that’s how it is,” Till continued.
Whether or not Till will actually get the fight against Strickland is uncertain. Strickland has been vocal about wanting to fight soon so it’s unlikely he’ll want to wait until March.
