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Despite Tsarukyan being the top lightweight contender, he has been sidelined from the title picture. As the champion, Ilia Topuria, takes a short hiatus, Gaethje (26-5) will fight Paddy Pimblett (23-3) for the interim lightweight title at UFC 324 on Saturday in Las Vegas. Gaethje believes Tsarukyan is to blame for the situation that he is in. Gaethje notes that “Ahalkalakets” has irked the UFC multiple times by pulling out of a title fight and then headbutting his opponent before a fight.
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Multiple Mistakes
“Tsarukyan is definitely probably more deserving,” Gaethje told New York Post Sports. “But the guy f’ed up multiple times, and this is something you can’t do. He was gonna fight for the belt, he pulled out the night before because he couldn’t make weight or… I don’t think any of us are actually privy to what happened that night… They put a lot of money, time, and resources into promoting a fight, and if you f—k it up like that, they’re going to be pissed off. Then he headbutts Dan Hooker on the scale. That’s also something you cannot do. He risked losing another fight the day before the fight.”
Tsarukyan (23-3) initially disappointed the UFC by pulling out of a title fight against Islam Makhachev last year. When Makhachev vacated the title and moved up, Tsarukyan was denied the title shot. Tsarukyan weighed in as the backup when Topuria defeated Charles Oliveira to win the vacant title. While Tsarukyan kept calling for a title shot, Topuria expressed interest in fighting Paddy Pimblett.
Meanwhile, Gaethje threatened retirement if denied a title shot. Tsarukyan hoped to secure a title shot with his stoppage win over Dan Hooker at UFC Qatar this past November. However, headbutting Hooker at the weigh ins probably didn’t help Tsarukyan’s cause. Tsarukyan had also thrown a punch at a fan while walking for his UFC 300 clash against Oliveira in 2024.
Justin Gaethje says Arman Tsarukyan is responsible for his own situation
“The guy fd up multiple times, and this is something you can’t do. They put a lot of money, time, and resources into promoting a fight, and if you fk it up like that, they’re going to be pissed.”
(Via… pic.twitter.com/djcnVNSbWx
— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA) January 17, 2026
This article first appeared at Recent News on Sherdog.com
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