Arman Tsarukyan lost out to Islam Makhachev on the scorecards in his UFC debut back in 2019, but after amassing a 7-1 record since then the 26-year-old now believes he has what it takes to beat the current lightweight kingpin.
“Just me can beat him in our division,” Tsarukyan told Lowkick MMA. “It’s my opinion. … It’s my dream fight. All my focus is to be a champion. That’s why I called him out. We’ll see. Maybe next year we’ll fight with each other. I want to see my improvements. I want to see my skills. That fight, I think (is) the most competitive fight for me.”
Tsarukyan gave a good account of himself in their first fight, being somewhat competitive in the wrestling department, while getting the better of the action on the feet, and he believes it’s his striking advantage that could be the key to victory in a possible rematch.
“I think I’m going to defend his wrestling and beat him in the standup,” Tsarukyan said. “I believe my striking is better, my kicks, my boxing. He has a good clinch, but I think my footwork, my kicks and my boxing is much better. He has good things in striking, too. We’ve got to be careful. I know how I can beat him and I want to show it to everybody. It’s going to be a tough fight, but I believe in myself and I’ll go there just for the win.”
Tsarukyan is currently ranked No.8 in the 155lb division, so he’ll likely need a couple more big wins under his belt before this fight could become a possibility, but given that he is still only 26-years-old he certainly has time on his side in his quest to become a UFC champion.
