Derek Brunson and Darren Till headline Saturday’s UFC Fight Night, set to take off at the UFC Apex facility Enterprise, Nevada. The winner here is expected to reach at least a title-eliminator, if not a direct shot at the belt, once Israel Adesanya and Robert Whittaker take care of their business. Brunson is on the rise, while on the other side, Till struggled a lot in recent times, in both welterweight and middleweight divisions. This is maybe the last chance for him to stay in the contender’s echelon after a series of mediocre performances.
Preview
Brunson was heavily tested against Kevin Holland, and to be perfectly straight, the veteran passed the exam with the highest possible grades. The 37-year old was an underdog in that one, as so many times before in his career, but he wouldn’t allow Holland to be in control for one second.
It was Brunson’s fourth consecutive triumph, third via decision during that time. Before Holland, he defeated Elias Theodorou, Ian Heinisch and knocked out Edmen Shabazyan. Throughout his career, the American fought many big names and pretty much lost all those contests – Adesanya, Jacare Souza, Anderson Silva, Whittaker, Romero, etc. And he would lose all these contests brutally via KOs.
.@DerekBrunson says Darren Till is surprisingly 'crafty' on the ground but still likes his chances:
"I’m a black belt in BJJ and an All-American wrestler… I think I do a lot of damage and mass work on the ground.”
Watch full video: https://t.co/jLHKvplDHI pic.twitter.com/bI61Bq8cfq
— MMAFighting.com (@MMAFighting) September 3, 2021
Brunson has a very nasty power in his hands, and we’ve often seen him hurt the rivals with one punch like just a few guys in the division. Meanwhile, he knows to wrestle pretty well, and that is his other quality. Yet, the minus in his performances is a very poor defensive skillset and the fact that he often attacks very recklessly, leaving his chin wide open.
Darren Till was one of the fastest rising stars in the UFC, having 18 matches without losing the same number of fights. However, following a defeat in a title bout against Tyron Woodley, Till went downhill.
After that one, he was KOd at home in London to Jorge Masvidal, which was a huge setback for the “Gorilla.” Following that match, Till decided to move up to the middleweight, that is, to return to that division, because of complicated weight cuts he had to endure before every welterweight battle. The first match vs. Kelvin Gastelum wasn’t particularly impressive, and Till won it via split decision, but in the very next, he was dominated by the former champ, Robert Whittaker.
.@DerekBrunson believes finishing Darren Till could get him a shot at the title:
Watch full interview: https://t.co/jLHKvpDf6i pic.twitter.com/nAizp6GYZb
— MMAFighting.com (@MMAFighting) September 3, 2021
The Liverpool native is an excellent puncher, who knows how to combine his leg kicks with ferocious hand strikers. After all, 10 of his 18 wins are after a KO. After all the injuries, his cardio remains a bit questionable, even though he managed to go to the distance in the past two events.
Prediction
It will be interesting to see how Till responds to Brunson’s takedown attacks and whether he has what it takes to control this aspect of the American’s performance. Meanwhile, be sure that “Gorilla” will punish every mistake Brunson makes in the standup. We already stated that the American exposes himself a lot, and that will be an ideal chance for the Till to finish this fight before the end, which will eventually happen, in our opinion.
Pick: Till wins 0.54 at BetXchange
