Darren tillPhoto by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC

Darren Till takes aim at ‘ginger ninja’ Bo Nickal’s master plan

by · MMA FIGHTING

Darren Till certainly knows how to pick his social media targets.

Undefeated UFC middleweight Bo Nickal is the latest fighter to draw Till’s ire, with the former welterweight contender taking a shot at Nickal on Thursday.

In post on Twitter responding to Nickal outlining his future plans on his YouTube channel, Till wrote, “The ginger ninja doesn’t even fight. Talks more than me and I talk a lot.”

The timing of Till’s comments are somewhat strange given that Nickal is set for his second appearance of 2024 when he fights Paul Craig at UFC 309 on Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden in New York. A three-time NCAA Division-I wrestling champion who made his pro MMA debut in 2022, Nickal has so far lived up to his enormous hype, going 6-0 and finishing all but one of his opponents in the first round.

However, Till isn’t impressed with the quality of competition nor does he feel that Nickal passes the eye test.

“He even shit talks me and hasn’t beat an opponent who’s record is a winning one,” Till wrote.

There is some truth to Till’s statement. All of Nickal’s UFC opponents came into the cage with winning pro records, but none of them were over the .500 mark inside the octagon.

Even when Till went on to compliment Nickal, he made sure to throw in a few nasty digs.

“Yes, his wrestling is good but his striking is appalling and his cooking videos make me want to stab myself to death,” Till wrote.

It’s unclear what Till’s angle is here as he is not currently competing in MMA. Till previously fought for the UFC welterweight title against Tyron Woodley at UFC 228, where he was submitted by Woodley in Round 2. He parted ways with the UFC in February 2023.

Currently, Till is dabbling in the world of boxing. He made a successful debut this past July with a controversial win over Mohammad Mutie, and was supposed to fight veteran Julio César Chávez Jr. on July 20 on the Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson card, but that event was postponed to Nov. 15. Till’s bout was not re-booked.

Check out Nickal’s podcast below.