Darren Till has left the UFC after requesting to be released from his contract.
He exits after a near eight-year run, which saw him compete for the welterweight title at one stage.
Some assumed Till had been cut from the roster but he was quick to address those rumours.
He said on Twitter: “They (UFC) happily agreed to release me out of contract which I appreciate.
“I’m not going anywhere, got big plans to execute and I’ll be back.”
‘The Gorilla’ had lost five of his last six fights in the organisation.
The last of those defeats came against Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 282 in December.
After that setback, Till posted a heartfelt video on social media.
In the video, he acknowledged his career was in a slump but insisted that he would come back stronger.
While Till has confirmed his departure, the reasoning is still vague.
Till’s recent struggles inside the octagon show how unforgiving the sport can be.
Only a few years ago he was being anointed the heir to Michael Bisping’s throne as the face of British MMA.
His biggest win came in 2018 against Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson at the Echo Arena in Liverpool.
The victory catapulted him into a welterweight title shot against Tyron Woodley.
But Till came up well short against Woodley and lost via submission.
The southpaw striker moved to middleweight and found immediate success with a decision win over Kelvin Gastelum.
However, that would prove to be his final triumph in the UFC.
With losses to Robert Whittaker and Derek Brunson, combined with several injury problems, Till’s stock was starting to head in the wrong direction.
In a move to get his career back on track, he paired up with Khamzat Chimaev and trained regularly with the Swedish sensation.
With that in mind, there was much intrigue heading into Till’s last bout against Du Plessis.
But that night ended badly and prompted many to question what would come next.
Aged 30, Till has time on his side and a return to the UFC in the future could still be on the cards.
(Photo by Diego Ribas/PxImages – Credit Alamy – Free to Use)
