Israel Adesanya says he’d love to fight Darren Till in the future

UFC middleweight prospect Israel Adesanya and welterweight contender Darren Till are two of the fastest rising stars in the UFC today. And while they currently operate in different weight classes, Adesanya expects that to change in the future.

Speaking to MMA Fighting‘s Peter Carroll, Adesanya shared his belief that Till’s struggles with the scale, which recently manifested themselves when he missed weight for a welterweight fight with Stephen Thompson, will eventually force him up to the middleweight division.

If such a thing happens, Adesanya would love to test his world-class kickboxing skill against against Till’s incredible Muay Thai arsenal.

“It’s funny because [Till] only commented on something on my Instagram not so long ago and I said, ‘You’re not going to be a welterweight for much longer’. It was only a few weeks later than he came in heavy for the Thompson fight and look what happened there.

“I’d love to test myself against him, I think that’s a really good fight for further down the line. I want to pass that test.”

Before any prospective fight with Darren Till occurs, Adesanya will have to get past Hawaii’s Brad Tavares, who he battles in the main event of the Ultimate Fighter 27 Finale this Friday in Las Vegas. In this fight, Adesanya will look to improve to 14-0 overall, and a perfect 3-0 in the Octagon.

Darren Till, on the other hand, does not have a fight booked, but is now one of the UFC welterweight division’s top contenders — thanks to his recent unanimous decision defeat of Thompson. While the middleweight division could be Till’s home in the future, he’s determined to stay at welterweight for now.

If Israel Adesanya and Darren Till fight in the future, who do you think will come out on top?

This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 7/4/2018.