Latest news with #LukeRockhold
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Darren Till snaps on Luke Rockhold after faceoff gets heated
Darren Till and Luke Rockhold are first up and join Ariel from Manchester in an exclusive faceoff to preview their upcoming MISFITS fight. After Darren leaves, Rockhold talks about his transition into boxing.
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Darren Till, Luke Rockhold erupt over PEDs, 'weird' negotiations, more in fiery Misfits Boxing face-to-face
Tensions are already rising between former UFC middleweights Darren Till and Luke Rockhold. Timing never aligned for Till and Rockhold to collide while still under the UFC banner. Instead, they're now set to compete in a six-round, 193-pound boxing match at Misfits Boxing 22 on Aug. 30 in Manchester, England. Till and the former UFC middleweight champion met face-to-face for the first time on Wednesday at a pre-fight press conference in London. Afterward, their verbal jabs continued to fly on a heated virtual faceoff on Uncrowned's "The Ariel Helwani Show," which led to Till accusing Rockhold of taking performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs). Till: "I'm gonna f***ing beat you up just for being a little juice head c***." Rockhold: "You're not 'Tilly,' you're 'T****es' now. You're f***ing 'T****es.'" Till: "I'm just like 'DC' (Daniel Cormier). 'DC' was a big fat jack of potato, but he could still fight like f***. I'm the white 'DC.'" Rockhold: "Ask 'DC' how our boxing matches went. I made t****es fly. ... You better get in shape and shut up." Till first lobbed the PED accusations at Rockhold during Wednesday's pre-fight press conference, while Rockhold countered with similar accusations of his own toward Till. Throughout their professional combat sports careers, neither man has tested positive for any banned substances. "You can get the VADA (Voluntary Anti-Doping Association) involved," Rockhold said to Till. "I had local guys telling me everybody from your team has popped. And it's always the person accusing people the most who are on s***." From a purely fighting perspective, both have been known for their strong striking abilities, albeit in different respects. Rockhold will be Till's third pro boxing match (fourth overall), while Rockhold's lone boxing appearance was in a ill-fated bare-knuckle match with Mike Perry in April 2023. Although Till and Rockhold have both been knocked out in their MMA careers, they've each managed to avoid that fate in competition since leaving the UFC. Despite Till having the advantage in recent boxing experience, Rockhold remains confident that his chin will hold up better in their matchup. Till, of course, disagreed. "I can take every shot," Till stated. "Look at the shots I took from all the guys I fought at middleweight. No one knocked me out. Nobody knocked me out at middleweight, and I fought all the best guys. [Robert] Whittaker, Dricus [du Plessis], all them guys, [Kelvin] Gastelum. I laughed at everyone and I've got a f***ing chin. You got battered by Mike Perry, and let me just tell ya, I'm not even looking for the Mike Perry fight now. He's that much of a bum. He's the biggest bum out there. He's a bum." Historically, Rockhold has been the physically bigger fighter, competing as high as 205 pounds in the UFC light heavyweight division, while Till started out as a 170-pound welterweight. They'll meet in somewhat of a middle ground at 193 pounds for Misfits Boxing 22. Rockhold last competed at 195 pounds for his Karate Combat victory over Joe Schilling last year. That being said, Rockhold claims it wasn't easy landing on the match's weight. "This kid's been b****ing about everything," Rockhold said. "He wanted it 185. His last fight was 198, I believe. Then he said he wouldn't go above 188, which is just f***ing weird and dumb. It just shows weakness. Then, somehow, we b**** about that for a couple weeks and settle on 193. I don't know what these f***ing weights are he keeps coming up with. But let's pick a real weight. Have a pair of balls and let's just do this right. What are we b****ing about? We're all in the same thing. His last fights were much above weight, and he's just obviously scared and trying to take weight away to make things harder [for me]. Make himself up, try to say I'm slower, try to say I'm chinny. "I guarantee you I'm faster than you. I hit harder than you, I move better than you and I've got a bigger set of balls." Before Rockhold signed to make his Misfits Boxing debut, his first bout of 2025 appeared to be an MMA return for a would-be rematch against old rival Chris Weidman. That fight was set to be within the upstart Global Fight League (GFL), which never got off the ground due to ambitious financial promises. In hindsight, Rockhold admits he never knew whether he'd actually get a chance to fight for the promotion, but was happy to accept the money GFL offered him. He also isn't closing the door on the sport he made his name in, he just wants to focus on the sweet science for the time being. "I was there for the GFL to get paid," Rockhold said. "Everybody else thought it was going to happen. I was getting paychecks, I made money. I was getting paid, dog. They were dishing out seven-figure paychecks on the schedule that were made for non-UFC champions. You gotta think like, that's not going to be feasible. How are you going to keep that business up and running when those guys are getting paid that much? There's not enough revenue to counteract that. So, I was taking the paychecks and moving on. "Boxing is what I want to do, and I never close the door on MMA, but it's nice to take a break and I want to box for a little bit."
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Darren Till vs. Luke Rockhold, Tony Ferguson vs. Salt Papi set for Misfits Boxing 22
Darren Till is returning to the boxing ring — and so is former UFC champion Luke Rockhold. On Wednesday, Misfits Boxing announced the headliner bouts for Misfits Boxing 22 on Aug. 30 in Manchester, England. The event will be headlined by a bridgerweight match — 200 to 224 pounds — between Till and Rockhold, airing live on DAZN. In the co-main event, former UFC interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson will make his professional boxing debut against Nathaniel "Salt Papi" Bustamante. The match will be contested in the 160-pound middleweight division. Till, 32, is undefeated in his boxing career since he left MMA in 2023. "The Gorilla" first scored an exhibition TKO win over Mohammad Mutie in 2024 before winning pro bouts this year against Anthony Taylor and Darren Stewart. Like Till, Rockhold has tried to stay active in the striking arts since leaving the UFC in 2022. Rockhold has fought twice outside the promotion, dropping a second-round TKO to Mike Perry in his 2023 bare-knuckle boxing debut before a earning a highlight-reel knockout of Joe Schilling in a Karate Combat match in April 2024. Ferguson will also be a newcomer to the Misfits Boxing ring. The match will be "El Cucuy's" pro boxing debut, coming after he exited the UFC this past January. Ferguson left the promotion after setting the unfortunate record for the longest losing streak in UFC history at eight straight. Renown as one of the greatest lightweights of his era during his prime, he initially intended to stick with MMA and signed with the now-defunct Global Fight League (GFL) for a fight against Misfits Boxing alum Dillon Danis, however the bout failed to come to fruition due to the GFL's collapse before it held a single event. Among all four athletes announced for Misfits Boxing 22, the well-known influencer-turned-boxer, Salt Papi, is the most experienced in the boxing ring. The 31-year-old currently rides a three-match win streak in his exhibition career, holding a 6-2 record overall. Outside of his debut in March 2022, Salt Papi has scored stoppages in all of his wins.
Daily Mail
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE White House invites MAGA-friendly UFC fighters to generate buzz at Trump's big military parade
Former UFC fighters Tim Kennedy and Luke Rockhold have been invited by White House officials to join Donald Trump at his big military parade this weekend. Trump is staging the event in Washington, D.C. to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the US Army on Saturday, which also happens to mark his 79th birthday. While forecasted thunderstorms are threatening to literally rain on his parade - with a Pentagon source confirming that it will be canceled or postponed in the event of lightning - the president will have two ex-MMA stars alongside him to generate a buzz if it indeed goes ahead. Kennedy, an American soldier as well as a retired mixed martial artist, and former UFC Middleweight champion Rockhold are on a list of over 30 celebrities set to attend after receiving personal invites from the White House. Both men will be there to both drum up support for Trump, who is of course good friends with UFC President Dana White, and celebrate the history of the US Army, something Kennedy is very familiar with himself after spending over two decades in the military. Earlier this week the 45-year-old took to Instagram in his army uniform to give fans a sneak preview of the parade setup, saying in a video: 'This is an amazing opportunity, this is a once in a lifetime chance to see and celebrate American soldiers and their service.' Ex-UFC stars Tim Kennedy (left) and Luke Rockhold (right) were invited by White House chiefs He later added: 'Check it out this Saturday. Support the greatest nation that ever existed.' Kennedy, who won 18 of his 24 professional MMA bouts, is a well-publicized Trump supporter and even joined the president in Oval Office back in April as part of a special event to honor US veterans. Rockhold, meanwhile, recently reached out to Trump with a plea after his good friend and fellow ex-MMA fighter Cain Velasquez was sentenced to five years in prison for the attempted murder of a man he believed had molested one of his relatives. In his own career, the 40-year-old won 16 of his 22 contests and captured the UFC's middleweight crown in 2015. Ahead of Saturday's parade, A Pentagon source confirmed to the Daily Mail that if there's lightning in the area it will have to be canceled or postponed. A White House spokesperson pressed that some show would go on. 'Any changes to the Army Birthday Parade will be announced by the Department of Defense of America 250 Commission. No matter what, a historic celebration of our military servicemembers will take place!' deputy press secretary Anna Kelly said to the Daily Mail. The Weather Channel's current forecast for Saturday in Washington calls for cloudy skies in the morning with thunderstorms developing later in the day. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Tim Kennedy (@timkennedymma) Instead of doing a traditional daytime parade, organizers decided to have it kick off down Constitution Ave. at 6:30 p.m. The parade itself will only last an hour - with a concert planned directly afterward followed by a fireworks display over the National Mall. Trump has long wanted to have a military-style parade, after seeing France's Bastille Day festivities, which also marked the U.S.'s 100th anniversary of entering World War I, in July of 2017. During his first term he was dissuaded from holding one over cost concerns.
Daily Mirror
27-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Michael Bisping reacts as ex-rival who blinded him gets Hall of Fame induction
While the former middleweight champion believes his ex-foe is a 'cheater' - he insists he deserves all the plaudits following his UFC Hall of Fame induction Michael Bisping has stated that his ex-rival, Vitor Belfort, is deserving of his spot in the UFC Hall of Fame. The pair famously fought back in 2013 when the Brazilian fighter blinded Bisping with a head kick that detached his retina. The British fighter underwent surgery and now uses a prosthetic eye. Despite this setback, he went on to have a successful career in the ring, picking up the middleweight title in 2016 after defeating Luke Rockhold. Bisping retired in 2017 following consecutive losses to Georges St-Pierre and Kelvin Gastelum. With a professional record of 30-9, the 'Count' has victories over notable names such as Anderson Silva, Dan Henderson, Matt Hamill, Chris Leben and Dan Miller. Belfort's career was not without controversy, as he legally used testosterone-replacement therapy [TRT] throughout his time in the UFC. The former light-heavyweight champion was recently welcomed into the UFC Hall of Fame in recognition of his impressive achievements in the octagon. Upon hearing the news from UFC boss Dana White earlier this month, the 48-year-old was visibly moved and broke down in tears. Bisping still believes his rival is a 'cheat' when reacting to the reward - despite giving him some praise. 'When we were in Des Moines, Paul Felder had a little piece for the (video) package where we speak about the greatness of the people getting inducted into the Hall of Fame. They said, 'We won't ask you Mike, for obvious reasons.' I said, 'You know what? I don't care. I'll do it,'' he told MMA Junkie. He continued by acknowledging the fighter's achievements despite personal grievances: "When you look at it and remove all the emotions from it, the man was the UFC heavyweight champion of the world at 19. He then became the light heavyweight champion. He almost became the middleweight champion. He's the closest thing we've had to a three-weight champion. He added: "I lost an eye because of this guy. He can stick his Hall of Fame up his a**. But he does deserve it. You can't deny what he did inside the octagon. You just can't deny it. If that's not a Hall of Fame career, I don't know what is. Whether you like it or not, he deserves it.' Belfort, known for winning the light-heavyweight championship against Randy Couture in 2004, faced many big names during his MMA career, including Chuck Liddell, Wanderlei Silva, Tito Ortiz, Alistair Overeem, Dan Henderson, Luke Rockhold, and Jon Jones. With a professional record of 26-14-1, he retired in 2018 following a knockout loss to Lyoto Machida.
