UFC middleweight Derek Brunson has predicted that he’ll finish fellow contender Darren Till in this weekend’s UFC Vegas 36 main event.
As he continues to break beyond the ‘gatekeeper’ tag that many fans had previously placed on him, Brunson will compete in his third straight UFC main event on Saturday.
Since falling to consecutive losses against Brazilian legend Ronaldo “Jacaré” Souza and current UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya, Brunson has recorded four straight victories. Decisions against Elias Theodorou and Ian Heinisch in 2019, a main event beatdown of the promising Edmen Shahbazyan last August, and a dominant showing in the UFC Vegas 22 headliner opposite Kevin Holland earlier this year, have left the 37-year-old close to his first championship opportunity on MMA’s biggest stage.
Having de-railed the Shahbazyan and Holland hype trains already, Brunson will look to dent the title aspirations of former welterweight contender Darren Till.
After a divisional debut victory over Kelvin Gastelum, “The Gorilla” saw his hopes for a meeting with Israel Adesanya dented by Robert Whittaker. The Englishman will now be looking to stake his claim for a fight with the champ this weekend. But in Brunson, he’ll be opposite a man looking to do the same.
During an interview with ESPN MMA ahead of Saturday’s main event, the North Carolina native discussed his game plan for his clash with Till, and suggested he’ll look to end the fight as soon as the opportunity presents itself.
“I like to go out and just do the smartest thing that the fight presents me. Whether it’s wrestling, whether it’s striking, I’m not in there trying to stay in the cage all night, you know. So, how ever I can get out of there as fast as I can and get the job done with my hand raised, that’s what I’m looking to do.
“There’s really no pre-determined, whether I’m gonna do this or that. I understand where I’m really good at it. And I don’t really think Till’s wrestling is really one of his weaknesses.”
When asked for his prediction, Brunson displayed confidence in his ability to finish the Liverpudlian, whether on the feet or on the ground.
“I see myself being my classy self. Just being out there, being alert, seeing what’s going on, and me getting the finish, you know. What round, it’s all dependant on my opponent. But I’m definitely going out there to get the finish.”
Following Adesanya’s victory over Marvin Vettori in June, which marked his third successful title defense, Australia’s Whittaker is expected to challenge for the title he lost in 2019 early next year. If he can impressively put “The Gorilla” away, Brunson believes he’ll be in line to face the victor.
“If I go out here and finish this guy impressively, it’s gonna be really hard not to give me the next title shot after Whittaker and Adesanya,” added Brunson. “You know, being that I’ve won four in a row against top opponents, all ranked guys, and Till will be fifth…(If I) go out and get a nice finish, I believe that would put me in a prime spot for the next title shot after Whittaker.”
Do you think a win over Darren Till would be enough for Derek Brunson to secure a title shot?
