UFC 244 results: Darren Till earns split decision nod over Kelvin Gastelum in 185-pound debut

Darren Till’s middleweight debut was successful.

At UFC 244, Till (18-2-1 MMA, 6-2-1 UFC) defeated former interim middleweight title challenger Kelvin Gastelum by split decision (27-30, 29-28, 30-27).

Saturday night, Till and Gastelum (16-5 MMA, 10-5 UFC) utilized all three rounds at New York’s Madison Square Garden. A close, perhaps lackluster bout saw Till utilize his leg kicks, footwork, and length to outpoint Gastelum for much of three rounds.

While Gastelum was able to land a leg kick or two-punch combination from time to time, the striking department largely leaned in Till’s favor. Gastelum’s takedown attempts were stuffed throughout and he struggled with Till’s range.

After the bout, Till had sent an expletive-filled message to all of those who doubted him entering the fight. He also noted unexpected delays in getting to the U.S. fouled up his weight cut.

In the leadup to UFC 244, Till didn’t have a run-of-the-mill fight week. Visa issues delayed his arrival in the United States until Thursday, just two days prior to UFC 244.

Approximately 24 hours after he arrived on American soil, Till weighed in. Despite the concerns travel may foul up his process, Till hit the mark at the middleweight limit of 186 pounds.

The fight was Till’s middleweight debut, a move made after he dropped back-to-back fights at welterweight.

After going 4-0-1 in his first five bouts for the promotion, Till challenged then-champ Tyron Woodley in the main event of UFC 228 in September 2018. Till’s undefeated run as a professional came to a screeching halt when Woodley submitted Till by second round d’arce choke.

Six months later, Till returned and suffered yet another defeat the hands of Jorge Masvidal. In brutal fashion, Masvidal knocked Till out cold with punches in round 2.

The loss is Gastelum’s second in as many fights after a loss to Israel Adesanya suffered in April. The Kings MMA product has lost two out of his most recent four fights, having defeated Ronaldo Souza and Michael Bisping. A former welterweight himself, Gastelum is now 3-3 with one no contest since moving up to 185 pounds in December 2016.

The middleweight bout was the UFC 244 co-main event at Madison Square Garden in New York. It aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN2 and early prelims on UFC Fight Pass/ESPN+.

Up-to-the-minute UFC 244 results include:

• Darren Till def. Kelvin Gastelum via split decision (27-30, 29-28, 30-27)
• Stephen Thompson def. Vicente Luque via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 29-27)
• Derrick Lewis def. Blagoy Ivanov via split decision (30-27, 28-29, 29-28)
• Kevin Lee def. Gregor Gillespie via KO (head kick) — Round 1, 2:47
• Corey Anderson def. Johnny Walker via (TKO) punches – Round 1, 2:07
• Shane Burgos def. Makwan Amirkhani via TKO (punches) – Round 3, 4:42
• Edmen Shahbazyan def. Brad Tavares via knockout (punches – Round 1, 2:27
• Jair Rozenstruik def. Andrei Arlovski via knockout (punch) – Round 1, 0:29
• Katlyn Chookagian def. Jennifer Maia via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Lyman Good def. Chance Rencountre via TKO (punches) – Round 3, 2:03
• Hakeem Dawodu def. Julio Arce via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)