Rockhold folded like a lawn chair

Former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold has broken his silence after suffering a brutal knockout defeat at the hands of Darren Till in the Misfits Boxing 22 main event this past weekend in Manchester, England.

The build-up to the fight was heated, with trash talk flowing on both sides and tensions nearly boiling over at the weigh-ins when the two had to be separated. Once the bell rang, however, it was Till who took control inside the ring.

Rockhold showed flashes of his trademark jab early, but late in the opening round he was dropped by a sharp left hand from Till. Though visibly shaken, Rockhold managed to beat the count and survive to see the second.

In the following rounds, Till’s power and precision continued to shine. Rockhold was wobbled in the second frame before Till closed the show in the third with a devastating seven-punch flurry that ended with Rockhold crumpled against the ropes.

After the fight, Rockhold kept his response short and respectful, taking to Instagram with a simple message:
“Shit happens, it’s all love @darrentill2.0. All the best to you brother.”

Rockhold, who captured the UFC’s 185-pound championship in 2015 by defeating Chris Weidman, has struggled to regain momentum since losing the title to Michael Bisping in 2016. Outside the UFC, he has competed in bare-knuckle boxing, Karate Combat, and now Misfits Boxing. His lone victory in nearly a decade came in April 2024, when he defeated Joe Schilling via TKO under the Karate Combat banner.

Till, meanwhile, reminded fans of his striking pedigree, delivering one of the most emphatic finishes of his career—even outside the UFC cage.