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Darren Till suffered a brutal loss at the hands of Derek Brunson last Saturday. His inability to prevent takedowns proved costly. Brunson dominated on the ground before submitting 'The Gorilla' in the third round.
The loss seemed particularly crushing for fans of Darren Till; the Liverpudlian was the favorite going into the bout. He also seemed a good win away from securing a title shot. Instead, he has now lost four of his last five and may no longer be considered among the UFC's elite.
It will now be fascinating to see who the UFC chooses to match up against Darren Till next. While an opponent lower down the rankings seems likely, just how much of a step down remains to be seen.
It could be that the UFC chooses to continue to place him in big-name fights, given his popularity. 'The Gorilla' has a massive fanbase, so pitting him against almost any ranked middleweight would instantly produce a contest big enough to main event a fight night.
However, with Till still relatively young at just 28-years-old, perhaps the UFC will opt for a more significant rebuild. It's not unthinkable that the promotion might give him an unranked opponent next. This would allow the English native to regain his confidence and develop the skills he needs to compete at the top of the division.
#5. Marvin Vettori vs. Darren Till
Marvin Vettori vs. Darren Till is a big-time fight, but that might be the same reason it doesn't happen next. Another significant factor with this potential match-up is that 'The Italian Dream' is currently scheduled to face Paulo Costa in the main event of UFC's Fight Night on October 23.
If that bout goes ahead and Vettori wins, it would be safe to assume that he will not be Till's next opponent. In that scenario, the Italian returns to title contention, the opposite direction from Till's current trajectory.
However, if Vettori were to lose, particularly in a one-sided fashion, the UFC may end up pairing these two together. It wouldn't be the first time either. Their scheduled bout on April 10 fell through after Till broke his collarbone.
A fight against Vettori would allow Till plenty of time off to work on the flaws Derek Brunson exposed. It would also be a high-profile bout. There was plenty of hype surrounding these two when they were supposed to fight earlier this year.
The negative for this bout is that it could conceivably go similarly to the Brunson fight for Darren Till. Vettori is an excellent wrestler. Unless 'The Gorilla' can make significant progress against this type of opponent, he could find himself in an even worse position and on a three-fight losing streak.
#4. Jack Hermansson vs. Darren Till
Jack Hermansson likely makes more sense as Darren Till's next opponent as he may not carry quite as much of a threat. 'The Joker' has had mixed success amongst the division's elite. He beat Kelvin Gastelum and Edmen Shahbazyan but lost to Jared Cannonier and Marvin Vettori in his last four bouts.
It seems fair to say that the Swedish native would present a very slight step down in competition for Darren Till.
An additional bonus would be this pairing's popularity in Europe. It could appeal to the UFC, who are seemingly looking to return to the United Kingdom relatively soon.
Perhaps the one negative is that Hermansson is still a very tricky fight for Till. He would perhaps be better off picking up a win or two before jumping back in against such an established fighter.
Hermansson does not currently have his next bout scheduled after his victory over Shahbazyan. Should Till wish to get back in the octagon sooner rather than later, 'The Joker' could be a good fit.
#3. Kelvin Gastelum vs. Darren Till II
Kelvin Gastelum presents a different challenge for Darren Till, given that the two have already fought before. Till picked up a victory on that occasion, winning via split decision in his middleweight debut at UFC 244.
Darren Till's victory over Gastelum is one of the reasons this bout makes some sense. 'The Gorilla', in theory, wouldn't have to make that much progress to recreate the performance that saw him win this bout previously. He could pick up a win over a strong middleweight contender and return to the top of the division.
It also gives Darren Till the chance to practice his takedown defense, which let him down against Brunson, given Gastelum is a talented wrestler himself. There also seems to be less risk in this one as the Englishman will know if he can effectively replicate his previous gameplan he can have success.
However, there are some doubts regarding this bout from a match-making perspective. Both of these fighters are popular big-name fighters who haven't turned 30 yet. They are also both at cross-roads in their respective careers as they've both lost their last two bouts.
Instead of pitting these two against each other and leaving the loser in a very deep hole, it makes more sense for the UFC to try and build these two stars back up. Look for both men to likely face lower-ranked opponents next and then perhaps we could see a rematch down the line.
#2. Uriah Hall vs. Darren Till
Uriah Hall is the lowest-ranked name yet on this list but may present the best option for Darren Till thus far. While 'Prime Time' had been riding a four-fight win streak before his last bout, he hasn't looked hugely impressive in any of his last three outings.
The Jamaican-American also presents a very different skillset compared to the other names thus far on the list. Hall is more of a striker, which seems to be a better match-up for Till given he was heavily out-wrestled last time out.
While Hall is still a big name in the division, he is 37 years old and Dana White has criticized his fighting style in the past.
The UFC might be willing to pair these two up, in the hopes of seeing Darren Till return to winning ways. It also provides the UFC with a high-profile bout that would generate plenty of interest.
#1. Luke Rockhold vs. Darren Till
Luke Rochold may be the only unranked fighter on this list but he is also the only former champion. While this match-up would be huge, it is worth noting that scheduling could very well be an issue here.
Rockhold hasn't fought since 2019 and hasn't fought twice in a year since 2015. He is scheduled to take on Sean Strickland at UFC 268 on November 6th which means this potential bout will likely not be happening any time soon.
However, that may be a positive as it would allow plenty of time for Darren Till to heal up and train hard to plug the holes in his game exposed by Brunson. It also wouldn't necessarily matter whether the former champion won or lost his next bout as you could still pit these two against each other in either scenario.
Rockhold is a big name in the division but he has also suffered knock-out losses in his last two bouts. This fight would give Darren Till plenty of time to improve and give him an opportunity to bounce back in a big way if he could bring home the win.
