The AO Arena in Manchester will host Misfits 22 this Saturday night, featuring an all-former UFC fighter main event, where Darren Till will face Luke Rockhold for the bridgerweight championship.
Till vs Rockhold will be available live on DAZN pay-per-view.
Till (2-0, 1 KO) contended for the UFC welterweight championship in 2018 but was submitted in the second round by Tyron Woodley in Dallas.
The 32-year-old suffered four defeats in his subsequent five fights and transitioned to Misfits in January, where he achieved a sixth-round stoppage of Anthony Taylor, after a matchup with Tommy Fury fell apart.
The Liverpudlian last fought in May, where he dropped Darren Stewart twice en route to a points victory in Derby.
Rockhold is a previously reigning UFC middleweight champion, having claimed the title with a fourth-round stoppage of Chris Weidman in 2015.
The Californian lost the title in his first defense, getting knocked out by Michael Bisping, and has also fallen in four of his five fights, retiring from the sport in 2022. This will be the 40-year-old’s debut in Misfits.
Prediction: I anticipate a fast-paced contest, and I believe Till will continue on his path towards a dream matchup against Fury with a stoppage victory.
Ferguson confronts Papi
The co-main event sees another ex-UFC star making his debut.
Tony Ferguson, a former interim UFC lightweight champion, has faced defeat in his last eight MMA battles, the most recent being a first-round submission loss to Michael Chiesa last August.
The 41-year-old Californian will take on Salt Papi, with the interim Misfits middleweight championship at stake.
Papi (4-2, 4 KOs) is entering the matchup on a two-fight win streak, the latest being a third-round stoppage against Kenny Ojuederie in November 2024.
Prediction: Despite Ferguson’s recent struggles, he should be savvy enough to secure an early win in this fight.
Mitchell faces Hemphill
Sean Hemphill (19-2, 11 KOs) comes fresh off a significant win over Mark Jeffers, and the American can claim the Misfits super middleweight title by defeating Ty Mitchell (4-2, 3 KOs), who is riding high after a stoppage win against Idris Virgo.
Additional Fights on the Undercard
Chase Demoor (3-1, 1 KO) will make the second defense of his Misfits heavyweight championship, and after knocking out Tanner Tolman in his last fight, he’ll look to repeat that success against debutant Natan Marcon.
Carla Jade (2-0-1) is set to defend her Misfits lightweight title against Daryn Harris, who will be making her debut.
Amir Anderson (3-0, 3 KOs) is expected to win early in his matchup against Brazil’s Vitor Siqueira (8-1, 4 KOs) at middleweight, and Rahim Amer can also claim victory by stoppage against Amadeusz Roslik (0-1).
Reality TV personality Joey Essex will debut and looks to outscore fellow newcomer Joao Barbosa in their fight, while Demi Sims aims to do the same in her first bout against fellow first-timer Nadeshi Hopkins.
Dillon Danis (0-1) will compete in an MMA bout, where he aims to get the better of Warren Spencer (1-1) by means of stoppage.
