Luke Rockhold’s new ring name indicates that tomorrow night’s clash might be a bad one for Darren Till.
The former UFC middleweight champion is a heavy underdog to beat ex-contender Till, who is eight years his junior and a more renowned boxer. That tag, however, has done next to nothing to dampen his enthusiasm for the contest.
Both men have had to be dragged away from each other during an intense series of media engagements, and have yet to stand face-to-face without hordes of security around them. They finally get to throw hands tomorrow night.
Luke Rockhold reveals new ring name ahead of Darren Till fight
At today’s ceremonial weigh-ins, fighters were introduced to the Manchester crowd with walkout music and ring names. Luke Rockhold was infamously one of the few UFC fighters of his era who just went by his name, instead of adding a nickname like his compatriots.
However, that changed at today’s open workouts as he was referred to by ring announcer Hus Ragip as ‘The Gorilla Killer’. This, of course, plays off Darren Till’s long-time nickname ‘The Gorilla’, which he has even immortalized in tattoos on his body.
The pair clearly have no love lost, with their teams even going back-and-forth during one of the most heated and legitimately aggressive fight weeks in Misfits Boxing memory. Their co-headliner features a much cooler pairing of Tony Ferguson and Tik Tok star Salt Papi.
Luke Rockhold and Darren Till can’t stop brawling
It has been an intense fight week between Rockhold and Till, who have had to be held apart by security on multiple occasions through their build-up. Today was no different, as Rockhold declared he would “put Till down like a dog” amid an eight-man effort to keep the pair apart.
“I’m going to f—ing k— you,” a shirtless Till screamed, before swatting away security and host Ben Davis who attempted to put a microphone in his face during the angry exchange. The pair were ultimately held apart, and their fight will go ahead as planned tomorrow.
