Kelvin Gastelum was surprised when he found out he was fighting Darren Till. The two will meet in Madison Square Garden at UFC 244.
When Gastelum got the call for the fight, he was unsure about accepting it at first.
“At first thought, I was like, ‘I don’t know if it’s worth it for me to accept this kind of fight because he is coming off a two-fight losing streak,’” Gastelum said to MMA Junkie. “I feel like I’m still in title contention, and I feel like I should get one of those top guys. But I want to fight in Madison Square Garden.”
Why he was hesitant to accept the bout is simple. Kelvin Gastelum believes a win over Darren Till does not get him closer to a title shot. But, why he accepted it is simple, he wants to prove he is one of the top middleweights and is still hungry.
“I put a lot of thought on who my opponent is and why I’m fighting him, and will it get me to the title shot. Will it get me closer to where I want to go,” Gastelum said. “I definitely asked those questions, and none of them applied to Darren Till. I don’t think if I win – it’s not going to get me a title shot. It’s not getting me closer. But I just think I need to go out there and make a statement against a guy like Darren Till because of my last performance. I want to go out there, I want to show that I’m still hungry, I’m still in contention, and I’m still one of the best guys around at this weight class.”
