Darren Till was dominant on Saturday night as he returned to action as he knocked down Anthony Taylor.
The former UFC welterweight title contender was scheduled to take on Tommy Fury at the Co-Op Live Arena in Manchester that evening. However, the Love Island star pulled out of the fight amid concerns he would be kicked out after making a cheeky statement at the press conference.
Instead, Misfits Boxing light heavyweight champion Taylor answered the call for a main event on short notice, which was his biggest career opportunity yet.
Result Darren Till vs. Anthony Taylor
It became clear early on that Scouser Darren Till was the home fighter down the road in Manchester. He was a huge favorite with the bookmakers going into the fight, and was welcomed with rapturous applause from the British public.
Anthony Taylor was a less popular proposition for the fans and was met with loud boos as he made his explosive entrance for his first main event. The American landed right early, but looked so much smaller than Till, who was clearly the more comfortable fighter.
Till was able to cut the ring well and land big in the first, with Taylor avoiding nearly clean shots. It seemed that the first went in favor of the home fighter, who showed both his boxing skills and his great size advantage.
Taylor's height disadvantage was manifested in the first comic style when he threw an overhand ball that somehow ended up below Till's belt line. The rest of the lap was successful for the Brit, who seemed to have the second lap clearly under control.
The third saw Taylor go down after a shot ruled a slip, and Till again appeared to get a knockdown that was not ruled by the referee. Taylor needed a lot more in the fourth, but was ultimately knocked down with a huge uppercut.
Somehow, Taylor managed to land clean in the fifth and hurt Till with a big right hand that bloodied his rival. But in the opening seconds of the sixth round he was dropped again and brutally stopped by 'The Gorilla'.
Darren Till and Anthony Taylor are both MMA veterans
Both Darren Till and Anthony Taylor have plenty of fighting experience in the MMA cage, albeit at very different levels. The Brit reached world title contention with Tyron Woodley in 2018 after beating legends such as Donald Cerrone and Stephen Thompson on his way to title contention.
Meanwhile, Taylor was a lower-level competitor in his MMA days, going 7-5 during runs with Bellator and other promotions. He was on a five-fight win streak against UFC veterans Dean Barry and Chris Avila before the coronavirus pandemic ended his career.
He has since moved into the Misfits Boxing world, via a stint in Jake Paul's camp. He has boxed considerably more than Till, but was a huge underdog heading into Saturday night's fight.
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