Darren Till retorts at Bo Nickal for "out of turn" comment about Khamzat Chimaev's illness: "He is devoted to his religion"
Darren Till has addressed Bo Nickal's comments about him and Khamzat Chimaev. 'The Gorilla' noted that he hadn't seen Chimaev in a while and criticized Nickal for fueling rumors about them.
In a recent edition of his podcast, Nickals and Dimes, Bo Nickal addressed the reported illness that caused Chimaev to withdraw from his scheduled UFC Saudi Arabia (June 22, 2024) fight against Robert Whittaker.
Nickal noted that the UFC tried to rope him in before ultimately booking Ikram Aliskerov to fight Whittaker at the event. Moreover, he alluded to Khamzat Chimaev's multiple withdrawals from scheduled main event matches over the years. The undefeated American fighter implied that 'Borz' hasn't fought since competing against Kamaru Usman last October and is losing his aura.
The 28-year-old jibed, who's long been at odds with Chimaev and Till, emphasized that Chimaev should continue to fight and win rather than "get sick." Nickal also insinuated that he's heard rumors about Chimaev and Darren Till, albeit he didn't expound on it. Nickal stated:
"I'm not in a hospital, so I can [wrestle] ... I don't think he's overtraining. I think he's over-partying. I don't know, probably, I don't know. What else would it be? I've just heard rumors about him [Chimaev] and Till and stuff like, crazy stuff."
Check out some of Nickal's comments below:
Watch the podcast episode below (*comments about Chimaev's withdrawal at 9:50-13:25):
Former UFC fighter Darren Till took to X and hit back at Bo Nickal. 'The Gorilla' seemed to suggest that Bo Nickal's comments about him and Khamzat Chimaev were inappropriate. Till tweeted:
"Why is my name getting dragged through the mud? I haven't seen Khamzat for a long time & he is devoted to his religion. Please guys don't speak out of turn and on rumours you don't know are true or not. Just hype a fight in a different way. We don't tell lies..."
When Michael Bisping recounted crazy stories about his time with Khamzat Chimaev and Darren Till
In the first half of 2022, Khamzat Chimaev was preparing for a fight against Gilbert Burns. 'Borz' and Darren Till were in the US, alongside other Chimaev teammates. On The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, UFC legend Michael Bisping, who was with Chimaev and Till, later shed light on the crazy stories concerning his time with them.
The UFC commentator highlighted that his drive with them was a terrifying experience. 'The Count' recalled that when he was out of the car at a gas station, he saw Chimaev and Till performing doughnuts, which they continued after Bisping reentered the vehicle, and they nearly hit a fuel tank during a doughnut.
Watch Bisping discuss the topic below (2:05:08):
Darren Till departed the UFC in early 2023 and is likely to make his boxing debut this year. On the other hand, Khamzat Chimaev was recently ruled out of his UFC Saudi Arabia fight due to an undisclosed illness. It's unclear as to when Chimaev would fight next.