UFC 244 Predictions

After some miserable weight cuts down to the welterweight division, plus a couple of bad back-to-back losses, Darren Till has finally decided to move up and compete at middleweight. His first test at 185lb is top contender and fellow former 170lber, Kelvin Gastelum.

The last time we saw Gastelum, it was during his sensational battle with Israel Adesanya at UFC 236. This fight in particular is important to mention as it creates a good idea of how this match-up can go.

If Gastelum decides to fight the same way he did against Adesanya, wading through a series of punches just to land one of his own, it could be lights out for him pretty quickly. Till is not only an absolutely vicious puncher, he's also extremely accurate. While Gastelum has shown that he's got a hell of a chin on him, he shouldn't want to test it against Till's hands.

That being said, if he mixes in his wrestling with his own powerful striking - something he failed to do against Adesanya - then Gastelum could give Till some major problems. Sadly for him, it seems like he's suffered the same fate as so many wrestlers and fell in love with his striking. If that's the case, expect Till to deliver some serious damage and win a unanimous decision.

Darren Till via unanimous decision