Darren Till feels Stephen Thompson deserves title shot before he does

Yesterday afternoon, in the main event of UFC Liverpool, hometown hero Darren Till picked up the biggest win of his career, defeating two-time welterweight title challenger Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson with a controversial unanimous decision.

Despite his win over Thompson, Till feels that Thompson should still be ahead of him in the contendership line. Till explained why he feels this way at the card’s post-fight press conference.

“I missed weight, so I don’t feel I deserve a title shot anyway,” Till told the media after his win (via MMAjunkie). “I missed weight. So there you go, right away. I don’t deserve it. I feel like Stephen deserves it. Whoever wins out of the interim [title fight between Rafael dos Anjos and Colby Covington at UFC 225 should fight] maybe Stephen or [Kamaru] Usman. They deserve it more… I still want to beat them all in the division. I want to come back and put that weight thing behind me.”

“I feel like my win could be a little bit more right now if I’d made weight,” Till said. “I’m taking a bit off. No matter what – win, lose or draw – I’m taking a bit off. Because I’m ashamed. I am a professional, and I’m a big guy for the weight, and I’ve got to get it more under control. I’ve made weight before … I’ve just got to get it more under control now. Adversity, good or bad, I’ll take it.”

“I think Stephen deserves a go with the interim more than I do myself,” he continued. “I know I’ve just beat him in a close fight, but give it to Stephen. He made weight and is still No. 1 and has beat more guys than me. Give it to him. I’m a realist. I’m not going to sit here and bullshit anyone. I’m not going to bullshit myself, and I’m certainly not going to bullshit you. Give [the shot] to Stephen.”

A classy outlook from Darren Till, to say the least.

This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 5/27/2018.