Darren Till has revealed that Luke Rockhold was his third choice as an opponent for his next boxing match, which takes place on Saturday.
Till, a former UFC welterweight title challenger, made his professional boxing debut in January under the Misfits banner, stopping Anthony Taylor. He then boxed in the promotion, headed up by YouTuber KSI, again in May, outpointing fellow UFC alum Darren Stewart.
• Buy Till vs Rockhold on DAZN ahead of Saturday’s fight
Next, the Liverpudlian boxes former UFC middleweight champion Rockhold at the AO Arena on Saturday (30 August), as the American makes his boxing debut.
But Till, 32, has said the 40-year-old was not his preferred opponent for his next boxing outing. In fact, two other former UFC stars were preferred options for the Scouser.
“Nate Diaz was the one that called [for] the fight,” Till told MMA Fighting. “He named the time, place, date, weight, everything. I just said ‘yes’ because obviously he’s the bigger side. He’s the ‘A’ side, stuff like that. But then he pulled out, so I’m willing to fight any man.
“I actually FaceTimed [Jorge] Masvidal while he was in Thailand and asked him to take the fight, but he showed me his belly and it looked like he was having a really good time. So, I was like: ‘Maybe that fight doesn’t happen.’ But I’d just love to get that fight back because Masvidal knows I’ll knock him out if we fight, but obviously he’s doing it for the paycheck. He’s got one up on me, so I do need my revenge fight with him. But hopefully it will come one day.”
Till was referencing his 2019 loss to Masvidal, now 40, who knocked out Till at UFC London that year.
“He was living his best life,” Till continued on his recent call with the American. “He was on the drink, he was with one of my friends. He was having a phenomenal time, and I was there for it. I was like: ‘Yeah!’ But I don’t think he would have been ready for this date, so obviously we had to go to other people, other options.
“Obviously Misfits owed me a big fight, a pay-per-view fight, so obviously they have to come through with a big name. Then they came with Luke, and I was happy with it. Luke, former Strikeforce world champion, former UFC world champion, you don’t get to them levels in this game without being a formidable opponent.
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“So, it’s like, I was very pleased. I was very happy with the match-up. I was extremely happy, I’m not going to lie.
“This is probably my downfall, [that I’ll fight anyone]. I don’t see fighting as pick and choose. I should have done that more in my UFC career, but I’m just willing to fight whoever they put in front of me. Obviously if it’s a big name, because they owed me a big-named fight, I’m ready and willing.”
Till last fought in the UFC in December 2022, losing to Dricus Du Plessis via submission. That defeat saw him slip to three losses in a row, after he was submitted by Derek Brunson in 2021 and former champion Robert Whittaker in 2020.
Rockhold won the UFC middleweight title in 2015 and lost it to old rival Michael Bisping the following year. His UFC run, like Till’s, ended with a three-fight losing streak.
In August 2022, Rockhold emotionally retired after losing to Paulo Costa on points, following knockout defeats by ex-light-heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz and Yoel Romero.
Since then, Rockhold has fought once in bare-knuckle boxing, losing to former UFC welterweight Mike Perry in 2023. Rockhold lost via TKO after declining to fight on, having suffered a gruesome injury to his teeth.
