Luke Rockhold suggests that the incident that he and Darren Till recently got into might very well be a preview of how chaotic their upcoming boxing match will be.
Rockhold and Till got into a physical altercation at a recent press conference ahead of their fight that main events Misfits Boxing 22: Ring of Thrones on August 30.
In a recent interview with Helen Yee, Rockhold says that based on what he saw in Till at that press conference, as well as the negotiations and discussions about what weight the fight would take at, he questions if Till is preparing for the fight with true intent.
"It's always good to get your eyes on the man you're going to fight. I think he's a little scared. He's making a lot of excuses and he's making up a lot of things in his head. So we'll see what he comes with.
"He's looking a little fat right now, so we'll see how seriously he's taking this thing. I've been working my a** off."
Luke Rockhold Ready For Anything Darren Till Throws At Him At Misfits Boxing 22
The fight with Till will mark the professional boxing debut for Rockhold, the former UFC and Strikeforce middleweight champion. Since parting ways with the UFC in 2022, Rockhold has lost to Mike Perry in a BKFC bout and defeated Joe Schilling in Karate Combat.
Meanwhile, Till, the former UFC welterweight title challenger, won an exhibition bout with Mohammad Mutie (a fight that resulted in a post-match brawl) before victories over Anthony Taylor and Darren Stewart earlier this year.
When discussing his strategy for the fight with Till, Rockhold said it will boil down to offensive pressure.
"I plan on bullying him around," Rockhold said. "He don't like pressure. He likes his space. I'm going to pimp him a bit, I'm going to feel him out, but I feel like I'm going to push the pressure, control him, and big brother him a bit.
"I plan on out-boxing him. I'm going to relax. I'm going to be myself. You got to respect Till; he's got good hands. So, I got to get in his head, play the game, and look to execute. I think I can knock him out. I'm going to fight to win."
Rockhold added that while it may not be a boxing match, and not an MMA one, he won't be prepared to bring out MMA weaponry if he needs to.
Till, in fact, once was scheduled to face Tommy Fury before Fury withdrew, claiming he wouldn't fight Till after Till's promise to resort to "MMA tactics" if behind on the scorecards.
"If Darren wants to throw kicks, we can throw kicks," Rockhold said. "No disqualification for kicks as long as he throws first."
Misfits Boxing 22: Game of Thrones takes place on August 30 from the AO Arena in Manchester, England. The card will also feature Tony Ferguson taking on Salt Papi in the co-main event, as well as Dillon Danis' return against Warren Spencer. The card can be viewed on DAZN Pay-Per-View.