Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Darren Till and Jared Cannonier were both interested in a potential fight at UFC 248.
The UFC could probably use a backup co-main event for UFC 248 next month in Las Vegas, Nevada. Strawweight champion Zhang Weili has been working hard to find a way to get to the US early, after the coronavirus outbreak has limited travel out of China. In case she can’t make it, a solution waiting in the wings could’ve been Darren Till stepping in.
Ever since former champion Robert Whittaker dropped off the March 7th PPV card for personal reasons, Till has been campaigning for a spot against Jared Cannonier on the Adesanya/Romero headlined event. The two men have initially come to an agreement on the fight.
“I’ve said yes! I’m ready!” Till responded to a video, in which Jared Cannonier told a reporter that he’d accepted a bout against Till. “This fight will complete the March 7th card!” the Team Kaobon fighter added.
However, not long after Till’s message that he’d accepted the fight against the ‘Killa Gorilla,’ the Till was back on Twitter making an ask that adds a lot of doubt that his bout with Cannonier will get made.
“Do me the favour of getting my visa for @ufc 248 so I can fight please,” Till wrote, in a post tagging President Donald Trump. “Surely you can pull some strings!”
ESPN’s Brett Okamoto then reported that the bout isn’t going to happen on that card anymore.
Based on conversations I’ve had, a potentially sweet middleweight fight between Darren Till and Jared Cannonier is NOT going to happen on March 7 in Las Vegas.
— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) February 13, 2020
Till also took to social media shortly after.
With the fight card just a month away, and currently already 13 bouts deep, it seems unlikely that Till vs Cannonier would be finalized—or that the UFC would necessarily feel the need to make the extra push to get that fight on this card. However if Zhang Weili can’t find a way to get to Vegas on time, the UFC may find itself badly in need of the kind of thrilling war that Cannonier vs. Till would be sure to provide.