An unexpected late-career surge has allowed Derek Brunson to shed his gatekeeper label in the Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight division.
The Sanford MMA export pushed his winning streak to five fights, as he disposed of Darren Till with a rear-naked choke in the third round of their UFC Fight Night 191 main event on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Brunson brought it to a decisive close 2:13 into Round 3, executing his first submission in nearly eight years. Afterward, he called for a rematch with the last man to defeat him: reigning middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.