One of the most notable bromances in the UFC involved Khamzat Chimaev and Darren Till. While the Liverpudlian is no longer in the UFC, his friendship with the Chechen star is still intact. In fact, Chimaev wanted Till to join him for the training camp ahead of UFC 319. However, ‘The Gorilla’ did not oblige, and he had some understandable reasons behind his refusal to join the middleweight title contender.

After his UFC exit, Darren Till did not continue his MMA career like others who have joined the PFL. Instead, the English star decided to get into boxing, and guess what? He has made a lot of noise in that endeavor. Till also has a fight coming up, so he wanted to fully invest in his training against Luke Rockhold, which appears to be the reason why he did not join Khamzat Chimaev in his preparations for UFC 319. Nevertheless, Till hopes to see the undefeated star win the belt.

“Khamzat, that’s my friend, and I want him to be champion, but no. Why would I leave my camp to go help someone else in another camp? Makes no sense at all,” Darren Till told Second Out during a recent interview. “He asked me to get involved. I said if I didn’t have a fight, I would because I love him dearly. He’s a f—ing great guy. I want him to be champion. I do wholeheartedly want him to be champion.”

Moreover, Darren Till hasn’t forgotten the last time he fought in the UFC. That’s because Dricus du Plessis was the one who competed against him and handed him his third straight loss — the fifth in his MMA career. As one would expect, ‘The Gorilla’ wants Khamzat Chimaev to avenge him and win the title in the process. “I want him to beat Dricus, get that loss back for me. But no. I have a fight coming up so there’s no way I’m going to be a part of someone else’s camp,” Till added.

However, this turns out to be a 180-degree turn for the English star, who earlier mentioned his eagerness to join Khamzat Chimaev. Nevertheless, he still supports him and hopes to see him edge past Dricus du Plessis, about whom he had some kind things to say a few months ago.

Darren Till gave ‘props’ to Khamzat Chimaev’s UFC 319 opponent

Dricus du Plessis has shut all of his critics up with dominant performances despite having an unorthodox fighting style. He’s not conventionally technical, according to the MMA community, but he’s got the job done on all occasions. Darren Till understands that Khamzat Chimaev could have a hard time beating du Plessis, as he claimed that there’s nothing to “hate” about the South African star, who’s been successful in the UFC, even though he handed him the loss that saw him leave Dana White’s promotion.

“He’s beat them all,” Darren Till stated this past May during an interview. “You have to give the guy props, he gets the win, he gets the job done, so who are we to hate? Who are we to judge? Fair play to the guy, that’s what I think, anyway.” Well, he may not hate Dricus du Plessis, but he wants to see ‘Stillknocks’ lose to his friend and brother-in-arms, Khamzat Chimaev.

There has been a lot of talk between Khamzat Chimaev and Dricus du Plessis ahead of UFC 319, as it is one of the most anticipated matchups in 2025. Darren Till may support his friend, but who is your pick — the South African champion or the Chechen contender? Let us know in the comments section down below.