Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
“Take your loss, have respect, you will be a champion yet in the future, but don’t start calling the guy who just beat you a journeyman.”
UFC middleweight contender Darren Till thinks Sean O’Malley needs to show some more respect in defeat.
O’Malley suffered a first-round TKO loss to Marlon Vera at UFC 252 earlier this month after injuring his ankle in the first round, but ‘Suga’ has been reluctant to give ‘Chito’ any credit for the victory, labelling his opponent a journeyman fighter.
“Let’s look at his career in five years, let’s look at mine. I’m going to be f**king world champion, he’s going to be a f**king journeyman,” he said.
Till who, like O’Malley is one of the most hyped young prospects in the UFC, advised the formerly undefeated bantamweight to credit Vera for the win and accept his loss like a man — no excuses.
“You always have to give credit,” Till told Michael Bisping on a recent episode of Believe You Me (h/t Mike Heck of MMA Fighting). “I was saying something to someone before about Sean O’Malley with ‘Chito’ Vera, I really like Sean and I think he’s gonna be good, but you got beat, man. Take your loss, have respect, you will be a champion yet in the future, but don’t start calling the guy who just beat you a journeyman.
“I’m not throwing disrespect at him. I think he’s a good fighter, but there’s two things that stuck out in my mind. One, is the way that he lost [with his ankle] and it just makes me think that I fought three complete rounds with a torn MCL. My knees are f*cked. I know what I had to fight with for those three rounds. I couldn’t use what I’m best at. I’m a master of movement and I couldn’t do it. I was there. There was no way I was going. Even when Rob took me down, I was in so much pain and I was like, ‘Get back up, get back up, get back up.’”
“Number two, I just think the way he’s handling it after the fight, ‘Oh, he’s a journeyman, I’m gonna be a champion,’ mate, just take the loss. Give the respect and you’ll be a champion. Just forget all of that.”
Till had dreams of becoming welterweight champion himself but was humbled after being outclassed and submitted by then-welterweight champ Tyron Woodley at UFC 228. The Liverpudlian has since moved up a weight class with a change of attitude and hopes to one day become UFC middleweight champion.
Till suffered a big setback against Robert Whittaker at UFC Fight Island 3 last month but will look to bounce back against Jack Hermansson at UFC Fight Night 186, where he will look to be ‘more strategic’ in his gameplan.
“I want to be more strategic for this fight. I want to nullify what he’s good at and I’m gonna fight with what I’m good at. Whatever, mate, I’m gonna knock him out in the first round.”
UFC Fight Night: Till vs. Hermansson is expected to take place later this year, Dec. 5, at a TBD location.