UFC middleweight Derek Brunson earned a dominant win against Darren Till in the main event of UFC Fight Night: Brunson vs Till. Till seemingly had no answer for Brunson’s wrestling and got taken down repeatedly. The pressure on the ground was too much to handle for the Englishman for the first two rounds.
Despite starting the third round well and landing his signature big left hand, Till got taken down and gave his back. He tapped out as Brunson was locking the Rear-Naked choke. Till’s championship aspirations took a major hit with that loss. Brunson, on the contrary, is knocking on the door for a shot at the 185 lbs gold.
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Brunson said he would rather wait for a title shot than fighting other contenders. But he didn’t completely rule out a title eliminator against Jared Cannonier. However, the veteran middleweight revealed that he had been wanting to fight Paulo Costa for a while now. Despite the UFC wanting to make that match-up, Costa never actually signed the dotted line.
“We have some options, you know. Cannonier isn’t completely off the table. I’ve been adamant about asking for the toughest guys in this division. And I asked for Paulo Costa, the UFC sent him a contract he didn’t sign it. If I would have got that fight I would be definitely next for the title. So, you know I’m doing all this work, I definitely want to be rewarded. I never got a title shot in my career,” said Brunson.
What’s next for Derek Brunson after his impressive win?
Brunson has now won 5 in a row in the middleweight division. Wins over the likes of Edmen Shahbazyan, Kevin Holland, and now Darren Till has put him in a prime spot to make a claim for a title shot.
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 20: Derek Brunson reacts after his unanimous-decision victory over Kevin Holland in their middleweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on March 20, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
And after a massive 14 wins in the promotion, perhaps he has earned his right to finally challenge for the title. If the UFC indeed makes him the man to face the winner of Israel Adesanya vs Robert Whittaker 2, or if they have anything else in plan for him, remains to be seen.
Also Read: ‘You Still a Bum’- Israel Adesanya Ridicules Derek Brunson After His Submission Win Over Darren Till
