Stephen Thompson thinks welterweight prospect Darren Till made a mistake in calling him out.
Darren Till’s wish has been granted, but Stephen Thompson thinks the breakout talent might be biting off more than he can chew at UFC Fight Night 130.
Till, 25, called out Thompson after his first-round TKO of Donald Cerrone at UFC Fight Night 118 and, after months of anticipation, will finally get to lock horns with ‘Wonderboy’ in just two days time.
Till established himself as a top-ten welterweight contender with his win over Cerrone, but two-time title challenger Thompson thinks the Liverpudlian made a ‘mistake’ in calling him out so soon.
“Darren Till definitely wanted the fight; well, he’s got me,” Thompson said in a promo for UFC Liverpool. “I think physically and stylistically, I’m a better fighter than him. I’m a better striker than him. You know, you gotta kinda be careful what you wish for. I think it was a mistake to call me out. I don’t think Darren does. I’m ranked No. 1, he’s ranked in the top ten. There are levels to this.”
Till will have a massive hometown advantage come fight night, but Thompson isn’t going to let that deter him from derailing the hype train and handing ‘The Gorilla’ his first professional loss on Sunday.
“You know, Darren does have a lot of hype behind him,” Thompson said. “He’s got all of Liverpool behind him. You know, it’s a lot bigger than Simpsonville, South Carolina. But I definitely have the potential to derail that train. Darren Till is beatable. It’s gonna be the hardest fight of his life.”
Thompson and Till will square off in the UFC Fight Night 130 main event this Sunday, May 27 at the Echo Arena in Liverpool, England.