Middleweights, beware.
Darren Till has hinted several times that he intended to eventually move up to 185lbs but that change looks like it will come sooner than many anticipated.
Till, who remains one of the bigger welterweights in the UFC, has had a tough time making weight in the past and he is looking forward to a camp that doesn’t finish with him draining his body 24 hours before a fight.
After coming up short in his first shot at UFC gold last month, Till now hopes to move up to middleweight for his next outing.
“I’m a big dude for welterweight to be honest, so that’s probably going to be my last fight at that weight,” Till told Paddy Power.
“Welterweight isn’t fully gone for me, but I’m going to be happy going up to middleweight now and I’ll be strong at that weight not having to cut as much weight.”
Till’s first career loss came in the main event of UFC 228, when he submitted to welterweight champion Tyron Woodley in the second round.
The Liverpool 170lber has remained relatively quiet since that defeat and while his nutritionist has insisted that Till would have no problem making welterweight for years to come, ‘The Gorilla’ wants to test the waters at 185lbs first.
At 25 years old, Till’s best years are ahead of him and he fully intends to take Woodley up on the rematch offer which came just moments after their meeting in Texas.
“I’ll have a few fights at middleweight and you never know, down the line if Woodley is still about then I can have another go at him, that’s a rematch I want,” Till continued.
“The future’s bright, I’ve got another ten years in this sport.
"We can do it again man!" 👊
A nice moment of sportsmanship between Tyron Woodley and Darren Till backstage after #UFC228 pic.twitter.com/SEcpWZmXmO
— UFC on TNT Sports (@ufcontnt) September 9, 2018
“It’s not that I can’t make the weight. I’m just a big lad so I just have to be on such a strict, regimented diet and being honest, I don’t like doing it.
“People might say ‘he’s not disciplined enough’, but because I have to cut so much weight I can only eat the bare minimum of food and that’s not how I want to be training.
“I want to be eating nice, healthy, big meals and training hard, smashing my training.
“The move up will help me keep my head more relaxed over the weight cut and I’ll be training more with a smile on my face, so I’m looking forward to going to middleweight.”
