Retired UFC legend Demetrious Johnson has stated his belief that Arman Tsarukyan has to be the first fighter to challenge newly crowned lightweight champion Ilia Topuria for the title.
“It needs to be him, Arman Tsarukyan,” the former long-time UFC flyweight champion Johnson said on his YouTube channel. “This is why I say [the UFC] it’s a reality TV show. It’s like, obviously Arman Tsarukyan is the number one contender. He’s ranked number one.”
The 28-year-old Tsarukyan fought Makhachev in his UFC debut all the way back in April of 2019, giving a good account of himself during a unanimous decision loss to the future champion.
However, Tsarukyan, has since gone 9-1 in the promotion, including his current four-fight winning streak, which includes wins over the likes of Beneil Dariush and most recently Charles Oliveira, leaving ‘Mighty Mouse’ in no doubt that he should be ahead of other potential opponents like Paddy Pimblett, who is currently only ranked No.10.
“Whatever you guys wanna go by the rankings, but they’re force in this fight with Paddy Pimblett versus Ilia Topuria just because it’s probably gonna sell more,” Johnson said. “But I think the rightful person who should be getting the next title shot at lightweight is Arman Tsarukyan.”
