Derek Brunson says Darren Till has “earned” his hype when compared to fighters like Sean O’Malley

UFC middleweight contender Derek Brunson believes Darren Till has earned the hype he receives in comparison to the likes of Sean O’Malley.

This Saturday night in Las Vegas, both Brunson and Till will hope to move a step closer to a UFC middleweight title shot against Israel Adesanya. Brunson is riding a nice four-fight win streak whereas Till, even though he’s coming off the back of a loss to Robert Whittaker, could vault himself right back into contention with an impressive win at the weekend.

When asked about the hype surrounding Till and his fans during a recent interview, Brunson made it clear that he does believe “The Gorilla” has earned the right to get to this point.

“There’s a lot of guys [like that],” Brunson said when speaking to MMA Fighting. “I would say he earned it more than a [Sean] O’Malley or something like that. I think what 18-4, former title challenger, a win over Stephen Thompson, he had another quality win, too. He has some quality wins.

“He put himself in a great spot. He’s from the U.K. with a big following, that helps also. He’s just a guy that has a lot of buzz around him. His personality, a solid fighter.”

Quotes courtesy of MMA Fighting

Derek Brunson is a man who doesn’t mind playing the role of “the spoiler” and we’re pretty confident in saying that’s what he’s going to Sin City to do again. It may not be a ‘beautiful’ performance but if it gets the job done, that’s all that matters.

Do you think Derek Brunson could receive a title shot if he can decisively beat Darren Till on Saturday night? If not, who would he have to beat in order to earn that rematch? Let us know your thoughts down in the comments, BJPENN Nation!