Former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold was brutally knocked out by former UFC welterweight title challenger Darren Till in the Misfits Boxing 22 main event in Manchester, England over the weekend.
The two had an intense lead up to the fight having to be separated a the weigh-ins. The back-and-forth trash talk was constant, but it was Till who spoke with his fists inside the squared circle.
Rockhold had some early success with his jab, but in the closing seconds of the opening round, Till sent Rockhold to the canvas with a left hand. Rockhold struggled to make the count but survived the round.
In the second frame, Rockhold again was badly hurt. In the third, Till left Rockhold crumbled along the ropes bent over backwards from a seven-punch combination ending with a left hand to the jaw.
“Shit happens, it’s all love @darrentill2.0 All the best to you brother,” Rockhold said in an Instagram post.
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Rockhold won the UFC’s 185-pound title by defeating Chris Weidman at UFC 194 in December 2015. He was knocked out in his first title defense against a short-notice Michael Bisping at UFC 199. Since the loss to Bisping, Rockhold has struggled to pick up a win in combat sports. Since leaving the UFC, Rockhold has fought in BareKnuckle boxing, Karate Combat, and inside the boxing ring.
His lone win since 2017 came in Karate Combat where he defeated Joe Shilling via TKO in April 2024.
