Darren Till downplays UFC 279 press conference brawl: ‘Nothing, it’s just team vs. team’
Darren Till won’t get involved in Khamzat Chimaev’s beefs, but is there to back him up.
Chimaev (11-0 MMA< 5-0 UFC) has been confronting various people who have mentioned his name this week ahead of his UFC 278 main event clash with Nate Diaz. From Paulo Costa to Kevin Holland.
During the UFC 279 press conference, Chimaev had an altercation with Holland, who shares the same card as him with a scheduled bout against Daniel Rodriguez.
Chimaev reportedly push kicked Holland in the chest, which sparked a backstage melee. That led to Chimaev and his opponent Diaz going at it, resulting in UFC president Dana White canceling the press conference. Although White said “all hell broke loose,” Till brushed it off.
“It’s nothing, it’s just team vs. team,” Till said in an interview with The MacLife. “It’s like they’re gonna protect Nate and we’re gonna protect Khamzat and it’s team vs. team. That’s all it is.”
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Till and Holland were seen jawing at each other at the hotel, but Till isn’t interested in getting involved.
“If Khamzat and Kevin bumped into each other, that’s their beef, none of us are gonna step in,” Till added. “That’s not our beef. If someone wants to beef with Khamzat, they got beef. It’s not like 30 of us are gonna jump in on Kevin. So I was saying that to Kevin, like, ‘None of us are gonna jump, you have your beef with Khamzat. So I said, ‘Just worry about your fights,’ and he was like, ‘Don’t tell me what to do.'”
Chimaev meets Diaz in Saturday’s UFC 279 headliner at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Holland competes two fights earlier when he faces Rodriguez. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPNNew and early prelims on ESPN+.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 279.
