Karate Combat confirms negotiations underway for Darren Till to face middleweight champion Ross Levine in 2024
Former UFC welterweight title challenger Darren Till is currently in negotiations to compete with Karate Combat in the coming new year. As first reported by British newspaper the Daily Star, the idea is for the former MMA star to make his promotional debut against current middleweight champion Ross Levine. Karate Combat officials then confirmed the rumor in an email to MyMMANews on Nov. 29.
Till’s last bout for UFC was all the way back in December 2022, when he lost to Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 282.
Levine, a New England Cartel member and teammate and training partner of Calvin Katter, faces Smilin’ Sam Alvey on Friday, December 15th at Karate Combat 43 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event is headlined by Anthony Pettis and Benson Henderson facing off in a trilogy rubber match to bring their legendary competitive rivalry to a definitive end.
Ross Levine on Darren Till
“Initially Karate Combat asked me if I would be interested in fighting Lyoto Machida, which I was. Negotiations were underway but they couldn’t get a deal done in time for this event. I am hoping we can get that fight done in 2024 though.
“At the same time, Darren Till made some tweet about how he could demolish the entire Karate Combat roster in one night. I was like great; I’ll take care of that. So, I asked Karate Combat to try and make that fight and again negotiations got underway, but they couldn’t get a deal worked out in time for Vegas.
“But that’s a fight I’d really like. I think we match up amazingly and he’s got crazy good striking skills. He’s only ever really had problems with guys that can wrestle. We’d have an all-striking fight, and it would be great. And obviously I am happy to put my Karate Combat Middleweight Championship on the line for him as well. Immediate title shot, come and get it!
“Luke Rockhold is another name we’ve had on the radar. He’s a free agent right now and he’s got very high-level striking skills. Obviously, he’s towards the end of his career like Machida is but I think that would still be a great fight. “But if I could choose anyone then it would be Darren Till. From a competitive standpoint, I would have the most difficulty with Darren, so that’s the one I’d want most.”
Karate Combat president Asim Zaidi
“Darren Till is one of the top strikers in the game and so is our middleweight champion Ross Levine, so we’re very interested in making that fight. “We’d hoped to get the fight made for the December 15th event in Las Vegas, but we couldn’t get a deal finalized in time. We’ll return to negotiations in 2024 and hopefully get that fight made early in the new year. “In the meantime, Ross faces another UFC veteran – Sam Alvey – at Karate Combat 43 on December 15th, on the card headlined by the trilogy rubber match between Anthony Pettis and Benson Henderson.”
Levine on Sam Alvey Dec 15th fight at KC 43:
“I think Sam’s friendly personality makes him dangerous. People forget he’s coming to knock them out, they are lulled into a false sense of security. So, I’ve made sure to try and keep things cold when we interact. We can be buddies after the fight.
“Sam Alvey can end the fight at any second, so this is a serious test for me. One mistake and it’s all over. But those kinds of risks excite me. On paper I think I win this fight in all areas, 100% – I’ve got power, I’ve got more variety, my conditioning is better. I’m faster and can pick him apart a bit. But I can’t lose focus for a second, he can knock me out at literally any moment.”
