Jared Cannonier on whether he'll put his nickname on the line against Darren Till
Jared Cannonier was scheduled to face Robert "The Reaper" Whittaker at UFC 248, but a personal issue for the former Champion forced him to pull out. The UFC tried to book Darren Till as a replacement, but Till had visa issues and soon enough, Cannonier was injured.
UFC will be booking Whittaker against Till instead at UFC Dublin this August, with Cannonier's next opponent unclear. However, Darren Till has trolled Cannonier online and when asked by Submission Radio (H/T MMA Junkie) about putting his nickname ("The Thrilla' Gorilla") against Darren "The Gorilla" Till, he said:
“I think I was ‘The Killa Gorilla’ before he was ‘The Gorilla,’ so he can kiss my a** about changing names and stuff like that."
He said that if it serves as motivation for Till, he can have that. He said that they're fighting for something much bigger than a name:
“Like I said, if he needs that for motivation, he can have that. He can do that himself, play out the scenario however he needs to. But at the end of the day, a fight’s a fight, names are just words. So, what we’re fighting for is something bigger than the name, I feel. We’re trying to get that title, we’re trying to cement whatever name I choose for you to call me. Cement that there in legacy or history.
Cannonier didn't seem to take well to Till trolling him online:
“Darren likes to troll people. That’s what the kids are doing nowadays on social media: They’re trolling everybody, just doing something completely ignorant and stupid, saying whatever comes to mind, which is usually something stupid or ignorant to get a rise out of people, a reaction out of people.
He said that he's a grown man and that you won't see him acknowledging "dum s**t" like that. We can see a scenario where he faces Yoel Romero. The Cuban, who is coming off an unsuccessful (and highly criticized) challenge for the UFC Middleweight Championship. His manager said that he'll be ready by 12 weeks, which is quicker than Cannonier's expected return.
Either way, it's a good fight that should set him up for a title shot. He's widely considered the dark horse of the division and if he gets through either Romero, Whittaker, or Till - he'll pose a serious threat to the winner of Israel Adesanya vs Paulo Costa later this year.