Darren Till has become one of the biggest British names in the UFC since former champion and hall of famer Michael Bisping.
Hailing from Liverpool, the 28-year-old has enjoyed a competitive time at the top of the welterweight division in the UFC before moving up to the middleweight division, and even earned a title shot against former welterweight champion Tyron Woodley.
Here’s a breakdown of Darren ‘Gorilla’ Till’s top 5 finishes during his MMA career so far.
- Gary Smallwood OMMAC 15 – October 20, 2012.
A 19-year-old Darren Till displayed his stand-up prowess by slipping leg kicks and landing counter-attacking punches, in a one-sided bout against Gary Smallwood.
Till dominated the stand-up game continuously landing shot after shot which left Smallwood helpless with no reply. It was the left high kick to the head that spelt the beginning of the end as Smallwood signaled to the referee to stop the bout at the end of the very first round.
- Junior Dietz Super Fight: Forja de Campeões – May 4, 2013.
In only his third professional fight Darren Till looked more than comfortable in the cage with Dietz.
Till controlled the majority of the fight and took Dietz down with ease before easily controlling the Brazilian on the ground, showing his equally capable of dominating the fight on the ground as well as standing up.
The Liverpudlian secured the victory with a plethora of knees whilst in the clinch followed by a barrage of punches before the referee called for the fight to stop, giving Till the victory by ground and pound.
- Wendell de Oliveira Marques UFC 67 – May 30, 2015.
At the age of twenty two Darren Till faced Wendell de Oliveira Marques for his UFC debut at UFC 67. After a cagey first round, an obviously nervous Till looked like he was behind on the score cards.
Till started the second round brightly, catching Oliveria with a flurry of strikes that started with a left high kick to the head before securing a takedown on the Brazilian vetran, where he finished the fight on the ground with a series of elbows to the head.
- Rich Taylor OMMAC 14 – July 28, 2012.
In his bout against Rich Taylor, the ‘Gorilla’ once again prevailed standing toe to toe against a more experienced opponent.
After the feeling out process, Till demonstrated the superiority in his stand-up game,
through finishing Taylor with vicious knees in the Thai clinch by knocking him down to the canvas causing the referee to wave the fight off.
- Donald Cerrone UFC 118 – October 21, 2017.
Finally, in at number one is Till’s career-defining finish over Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone. For the ‘Gorilla’, this was the chance to beat a legendary name within the UFC that would make him a real contender within the welterweight division.
Heading into the fight, little was known about Till’s ability to compete up against one of the most exciting fighters in the UFC. However, Darren Till silenced the sceptics with a wonderful performance, finishing Donald Cerrone in the first round after breaking his nose with a solid elbow followed by a left hook, before hitting ‘Cowboy’ with a barrage of punches up against the fence.
This decisive first round TKO cemented Till’s rightful place as a serious contender within the welterweight division. He then went on to beat title contender Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson in a unanimous decision after five rounds, before losing to the champion Tyron Woodley at UFC 228.
Darren Till was scheduled to fight Marvin Vettori on April 10thbut was forced to pull out of the bout after breaking his collarbone in training.
