Darren Till has declared that doubters have a 'special place in his heart' ahead of his return to the UFC ring against Derek Brunson.
It's been more than 13 months since the Liverpudlian last set foot in the octagon and, in his absence, a lot of doubt has been raised towards him.
The past three years have been tough for Till, following defeat to Tyron Woodley in a bout for the welterweight title that saw his bid to climb to the top of the division fall flat.
In his fast four appearances, Till has a record of just 1-3 and, during his time away he has struggled with a plethora of injuries.
However, he is confident heading into the fight in Las Vegas and issued a stern message to those that may doubt him.
“I’m fighting the best out there, and anything can happen. I know I’m going in there Saturday, and I know 100 percent I’m going to win this fight," he told MMA Junkie.
"I know that for a fact, but things can happen, and listen, all these people who jumped on the train, mostly the people who jumped off the train – as I like to call them, the doubters – they’ve got a special place in my heart.
“You know when I’m like on the treadmill in the Institute, and I’m running out my little shoes and it’s getting to like the 45th minute and I’m thinking, ‘Ah, you can just do it. You can stop this five minutes before'.
"I’m like, ‘Not a chance. I’m going to the 45, 50-minute run that I set out to do – eight miles and stuff like that – and all the other times when I’m doing my 10 five-minute pads with Colin (Heron), it’s like, ‘Ah, do I just coast this round?’ No!
"Hit harder, you know what I mean? So you doubters, you’ve got a special place in my heart.”
