An intriguing middleweight clash between Darren Till and Derek Brunson was set to headline a UFC Fight Night card on August 14th.

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However, the UFC is looking to push that fight to UFC 266 in September. The pay-per-view will be headlined by the light-heavyweight title fight between Jan Blachowicz and Glover Teixeira.

‘The Gorilla’ last competed against former champion Robert Whittaker in 2020. Till lost a decision to ‘The Reaper’. That halted his progress in the middleweight division of the UFC as the Liverpool native started his venture in the 185 lbs division with a split decision win over top contender Kelvin Gastelum.

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ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – JULY 26: (L-R) Darren Till of England punches Robert Whittaker of New Zealand in their middleweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event inside Flash Forum on UFC Fight Island on July 26, 2020 in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

As for Brunson, he is currently riding a 4-fight winning streak. Back-to-back losses to Ronaldo Souza and Israel Adesanya stopped his progress in the division for a bit.

He has since managed to rack up 4 consecutive wins to rejuvenate himself. Edmen Shahbazyan and Kevin Holland have been his most recent victims inside the UFC Octagon.

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Either fighter will look to get the win when they clash inside the Octagon. They are both big names in terms of the division’s standpoint. And a win will help each man to catapult among the elites of the middleweight division of the UFC.

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The UFC 266 card is likely to take place in the O2 arena in London. This can very well turn out to be a title eliminator in the middleweight division.

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Darren Till vs Derek Brunson: Early prediction

Brunson has power in his hands and he has the wrestling ability to take the fight to the ground if needed. ‘The Gorilla‘ on the other hand, is a supreme striker.

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He is one of the best stand-up fighters in the entire UFC roster. To add to that, the Englishman has a great takedown defense that helps him neutralize wrestlers.

ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – JULY 26: Darren Till of England prepares to fight Robert Whittaker of New Zealand in their middleweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event inside Flash Forum on UFC Fight Island on July 26, 2020 in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

On paper, Till seems to have the edge. However, Brunson is not one to take lightly for anybody in the middleweight division of the UFC. When the Octagon door closes, it all comes down to which fighter can impose their skillsets and willpower over the other.

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Who gets it done? Till or Brunson? Let us know your pick.

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Apratim Banerjee

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Apratim Banerjee is a senior UFC author for EssentiallySports and has been writing professionally for almost a year. Before his current gig, Apratim worked as a UFC writer for Sportskeeda. A long-time MMA fan, Apratim has developed a critical eye for the sport that has helped him transfer his vast knowledge to his copies and give hardcore and casual readers a detailed insight into the fights and fighters. Dan Henderson’s brutal knockout against Michael Bisping at UFC 100 in 2009 is one of his earliest memories of the sport. He has never missed a UFC PPV or a Fight Night since, which speaks volumes about his wealth of MMA knowledge. Israel Adesanya, Jon Jones, Stipe Miocic, Conor McGregor are some of his favorite fighters. Apart from this, Apratim plays soccer in his free time and loves scoring long-distance goals.

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