Liverpool FC might not have been able to take the Champions League trophy back home, but Darren Till will have a chance to end the weekend on a good note for Liverpool sports fans. The young Scouser will be fighting top welterweight contender Stephen Thompson in the main event of UFC Liverpool. It’s not a stacked card, but the headlining slot should be interesting enough to make it a must-watch event. Regardless, there’s still some good fights on the card, such as Jason Knight vs. Makwan Amirkhani and Neil Magny vs. Craig White.
What: UFC Liverpool (UFC Fight Night 130)
Where: Echo Arena in Liverpool, England.
When: Sunday, May 27. The one-fight UFC Fight Pass preliminary card begins at 10:30 a.m. ET, the four-fight FOX Sports 1 preliminary card begins at 11:00 a.m. ET, and the six-fight main card begins at 1:00 p.m. ET also on FOX Sports 1.
I didn’t like this match up when it was originally announced, and I still don’t like it now. Don’t get me wrong, Stephen Thompson vs. Darren Till should be an entertaining fight, but it does seem to me that Till is being rushed here.
Till is a very promising prospect and he should be given time to develop; of course, that’s if you want to see him fulfill his potential. I think this will be an uphill battle for Till and I do think he has way more than a puncher’s chance here.
Till has very technical striking and uses his length well. He has good power and speed behind his attacks. Till also has a great takedown defense, a good ability to get back to his feet, and solid submission defense (I doubt he’ll need any of that here). Meanwhile, Thompson shares several attributes with Till, but in his own style. Thompson uses range very well and strikes with precision. Thompson is also quick and powerful with his striking, and is very good at fighting off grapplers.
I wonder how effective a pure striker can be against Thompson without a major threat of a takedown. With Till not being much of an offensive factor on the ground, Thompson’s striking should really open up here. I don’t expect the two to be holding back a whole lot (at least not in the level of the Woodley vs. Thompson fights), so I think we’ll get a pretty active fight. I think both guys show good chins, probably on a similar level. So I see this coming down to who can land cleaner and more often.
I think that fighter will be “Wonderboy.” Thompson is good at avoiding major damage and I think he’ll be more accurate than Till.
Pick: Thompson
Neil Magny was originally scheduled to fight Gunnar Nelson, but that fight fell through and now Magny will be taking on Craig White.
White, a Cage Warriors veteran, is 14-7 as a professional fighter and he’s currently on a four-fight win streak. White is primarily a jiu-jitsu guy. He has a dangerous guard and solid top grappling fundamentals. White also has decent takedowns and striking.
This is easily White’s toughest test. Magny is now a true veteran of the sports with over 25 fights in his record. Magny has been fighting at a world-class level for some time now and has proven to be one of the most well-rounded fighters on the UFC roster. Magny can strike at a high level and can grapple and wrestle at a high level too.
I don’t see Magny having much trouble winning here. Magny is several levels ahead of White in the striking game. I don’t see White taking down Magny either, and even if he does, Magny might have a better ground game as well, although not by a lot. I see Magny getting a TKO stoppage here.
Pick: Magny
Interesting fight.
I think this one might look a lot like the Allen vs. Amirkhani fight. Allen is a talented grappler, a well-rounded one, but he’s also pretty decent on the feet. Allen doesn’t really have any major holes and can fight almost anywhere the fight goes. Burnell, like Amirkhani, is primarily a grappler who’s most effective on top. Burnell is a physical powerhouse and that plays well with his wrestling and takedowns.
This should be a fun fight filled with great scrambles. I think Allen will ultimately get the nod from the judges here being far more well-rounded than Burnell.
Pick: Allen
I’m a bit torn in this one.
Jason Knight has showed he’s an exciting prospect, but he didn’t look like himself in his last fight against Gabriel Benitez. Typically, we can expect a tough fighter with slick jiu-jitsu and a solid stand up. Knight’s fight IQ is not the best, but that’s also why he’s so much fun to watch. Knight has no problem taking a punch just as long as he can give one right back.
Amirkhani is a very talented grappler that needs work on the feet. Amirkhani is athletic and durable.
I find Knight to have more tools than Amirkhani, but I think Amirkhani has a smarter and more strategic approach to fighting. Tough call, but I see Amirkhani implementing a good game plan and sticking to it to win a decision.
Pick: Amirkhani
I’ll go with Nordine Taleb. Claudio Silva is a skilled jiu-jitsu fighter, but he lacks the the wrestling to take the fight where he’s most dangerous. Silva does have some takedowns, but I don’t believe they’re at the level to take down Taleb. On the feet, Silva is decent, but Taleb is a lot more advanced.
I think Taleb will get a stoppage here.
Pick: Taleb
Either guy can win here.
Eric Spicely is a slick grappler with sneaky submissions. He can also strike a bit, but that’s not his biggest attribute. On the other hand, Darren Stewart is a skilled striker that has a good amount of power and speed. Stewart is far more athletic than Spicely.
It’s either Spicely wraps up Stewart in a submission, or Stewart out-powers Spicely to get a finish on the feet. Tough call, but I think the English fighter will get the win. I think Stewart should be able to stuff Spicely’s takedowns while landing big shots on the feet.
Pick: Stewart
Undercard:
The main event of UFC Liverpool is a go.
A potential disaster for the UFC was averted as officials announced that Darren Till was able to make 187.3 pounds at a scheduled weigh-in around 1 p.m. local time in Liverpool, England, making him eligible to face Stephen Thompson in the main event of Sunday’s show at the Echo Arena. Till was required to hit the scales again after failing to make the welterweight limit (171 pounds for a non-title bout) at Saturday’s official weigh-ins, where he came in heavy at 174.5 pounds.
The conditions were negotiated by Thompson’s team. Till forfeited 30-percent of his show money to Thompson, could come in no heavier than 188 pounds on the second weight check, and Thompson’s team were allowed to be on-hand to witness the check.
Media were not permitted to watch, but a source sent MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani a picture of Till’s Sunday weigh-in:
Media wasn’t allowed in the room when Darren Till weighed in, however, here’s a pic of the scale provided to me by a source who was in the room. As you can see, 187.3 pounds. Crisis averted. pic.twitter.com/c1mkXoncWw — Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) May 27, 2018
Sources also told Helwani that Thompson last checked his weight at approximately 12:30 p.m. local time. “Wonderboy” weighed 185.2 pounds and is not typically heavier than 190 pounds when he steps into the cage.
Till hails from Liverpool and a change to the main event would have been a major blemish on the UFC’s first visit to his hometown. Officials said that the 25-year-old’s initial weigh-in attempt was complicated by a family emergency that he had to deal with on Saturday.
UFC Fight Night 130 has not lost its highly-anticipated main event — as of now.
Darren Till vs. Stephen Thompson was at risk of being cancelled Saturday morning when Till, the hometown hero, missed weight for the welterweight bout by 3.5 pounds. Till had to deal with a family emergency, UFC officials said, which at least partially led to the weight miss. “Wonderboy,” a former two-time title challenger, ultimately still agreed to the fight, allowing it to proceed as planned, but under a couple certain conditions.
First, Till will forfeit 30 percent of his total fight purse (including bonuses) to Thompson. Second, he must weigh 188 pounds or less on fight-day. The additional weigh-in will occur at 1 p.m. local time, prior to Till’s departure to the arena.
MMAjunkie.com’s John Morgan first reported the news Saturday.
Thompson and his team can be present at the weigh-in if they wish, per MMAFighting.com’s Ariel Helwani.
If Till weighs in over 188 pounds Sunday afternoon, another negotiation will have to take place between Till, Thompson, and the UFC, per Helwani. It’s not a given the bout will be immediately scrapped if that happens. Michel Prazeres was in a similar situation ahead of a bout against Desmond Green in Belem, Brazil earlier this year. He missed weight at the official weigh-ins and then again on fight day, but Green still accepted the bout, anyway. Green lost a decision.
Till has always been a rather large welterweight. The undefeated contender revealed after a knockout win over Donald Cerrone late last year that he weighed about 200 pounds on fight night — just under 30 pounds heavier than what he weighed the day before.
Granted Till makes weight on Sunday, he will go a potential five rounds with Thompson in the promotion’s debut in Liverpool, England. The card takes place at Echo Arena.
