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UFC middleweight fighter Darren Till punches Kelvin Gastelum in their bout at UFC 244 in New York in November 2019. Photo: AP
Martial ArtsMixed Martial Arts

UFC: Darren Till insists he’ll hurt ‘ork’ Marvin Vettori for five rounds and says ‘see you soon’

  • Injured Till says Vettori’s dominant win over Kevin Holland was evidence ‘he couldn’t strike with me’ had their original fight gone ahead
  • ‘The Gorilla’ also offers olive branch to struggling welterweight Mike Perry, whose UFC contract ran out after loss on weekend
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)
Andrew McNicol
Andrew McNicol
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Middleweight contender Darren Till was not impressed by Marvin Vettori’s takedown-heavy win at UFC on ABC 2 on Saturday.

“The Gorilla” Till (18-3-1), who was scheduled to fight Vettori (17-4-1) in Las Vegas but was replaced by Kevin Holland on short notice after sustaining a broken collarbone, said the performance was a clear indicator “The Italian Dream” was not prepared to stand and strike in the Octagon had they met.

“As for [Marvin] … sorry ork,” the 28-year-old Englishman tweeted after the fight.

“It wasn’t the prettiest win but a wins a win and it means so much to him you can see. That fight told me he knew he couldn’t strike with me so he was going to try take me down. Even if he were to succeed in takedowns he wouldn’t of been able to keep me.”

Till, who is likely to spend months out recovering from his injury sustained in training camp, lost his last fight to former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker via unanimous decision last July. He had beaten Kelvin Gastelum via split decision in November 2019. His last two opponents are preparing for a headline bout at UFC Fight Night next week.
Though the 27-year-old Vettori is already angling for a rematch with champion Israel Adesanya later this year, Till insisted the division’s rising stars will face off in future. He also had an issue with Vettori’s pre-fight press conference comments claiming that Till’s injury was not legitimate.
Darren Till punches Robert Whittaker in their middleweight bout during UFC Fight Night on Fight Island in Abu Dhabi. Photo: Zuffa LLC

“I would hurt this man for five rounds on the feet. But hey who the [expletive] am I to talk? I pulled out of the fight so every right I have goes out the window with that. Whatever happens for Marvin next good luck. I’m sure we’ll meet soon. I’ve got a fake injury to recover from,” Till said.

“And repair. see you all soon. All very soon x,” added Till, who also invited welterweight Mike Perry to train at his Team Kaobon gym after the American lost to Daniel Rodriguez on the undercard. Perry’s future is unclear as he is on a two-fight losing streak with no fights left on his UFC contract.

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