UFC 300
Arman Tsarukyan Finally Got What He Wanted
UFC Lightweight Contender Arman Tsarukyan Has Been On A Collision Course With The 155-pound Elite, And At UFC 300, He’ll Have His Chance To Prove He’s Next For Islam Makhachev
On April 13, the mixed martial arts community will have their eyes locked in on the epic milestone event UFC 300: Pereira vs Hill. With twelve past or current champions, and high-profile fights from top to bottom, there’s no doubt that UFC 300 is one of the most loaded cards in company history.
Sounds like the perfect opportunity to make the biggest statement of your career. And these days, that’s all that’s on the mind of surging lightweight contender Arman Tsarukyan.
Tsarukyan made his UFC debut against current champion Islam Makhachev, and he’s been slowly, but surely, clawing his way closer to a rematch. At UFC 300, he gets his chance to solidify himself as a true title contender when he faces former champion Charles Oliveira.
“Finally, I got what I wanted,” Tsarukyan told UFC.com at the UFC 300 Q&A in March. “UFC 300 is the biggest fight and I want to fight on that day. It’s so exciting.”
“There are a lot of big fights, but the No. 1 contender fight is me versus Charles. That’s it.”
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After knocking out Beneil Dariush in emphatic fashion to close out 2023, Tsarukyan knew a big fight was next up on the docket. He wasn’t totally sure of who it would be, but he was confident that “Do Bronxs” would be the man standing across from him when he laced up the 4oz gloves next.
Oliveira went on one of the most historic runs in UFC history on his way to becoming champion. In October of 2022, he lost to Makhachev in a wild sequence in which Makhachev hurt him on the feet and submitted the Brazilian submission ace. It was stunning.
Oliveira bounced back with a first-round knockout win over Dariush in June of 2023, and that win resulted in a rematch being booked between himself and Makhachev at UFC 294 in October of 2023. A week before the fight, Oliveira suffered a cut and was forced to withdraw from the fight.
Rather than wait on the sideline for Makhachev, Oliveira chose to stay busy and he accepted the fight with Tsarukyan. On the flip side of the coin, Tsarukyan doesn’t think that Oliveira had much of a choice and his only way back to the title was through him.
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“He had to accept this fight because he pulled out from his title fight, and he can’t fight again for the title because he’s got to fight against young guys like me who want to fight for the title,” Tsarukyan said. “I feel like it’s my time right now.
“It’s so exciting because he’s a former champion and he’s defended, and when I beat him, people are going to talk about me. ‘Who is this kid?’
“Everybody is going to know me.”
There’s no doubt that Oliveira is a beloved fan favorite, and at the UFC 300 Q&A, some fans heckled Tsarukyan about the matchup. Tsarukyan handled the out-of-pocket moments with maturity, smiling and letting the Oliveira supporters know that they’ll just have to see how things play out when the two top lightweights collide at T-Mobile Arena on April 13.
Oliveira vs Tsarukyan will be the third of four incredible 155-pound fixtures taking place at UFC 300. The final lightweight bout of the night will be between BMF title holder Justin Gaethje and former featherweight champion Max Holloway. The fact of the matter is that Tsarukyan will be aiming to put on a more spectacular performance than that of Gaethje or Holloway, and beating Oliveira in memorable fashion could go a long way in his name being the next to come up on a contract to fight Makhachev.
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“Of course, every day I’m thinking about [a rematch with Makhachev],” Tsarukyan said. “To be honest, I think about Charles but sometimes I think, ‘OK I’m going to win and finally I’m going to fight with Islam Makhachev’. One step and that’s it.
“The best-case scenario is choke him out. Because people are going to talk about me. He choked out the best jiu jitsu guy on the planet.
“Drop him and then go there and choke him like Islam did.”
UFC 300: Pereira vs Hill took place live from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on April 13, 2024. See the final Prelim and Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
