Arman Tsarukyan is irked by the idea of Paddy Pimblett being in the UFC lightweight title picture.
Champion Ilia Topuria (17-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) continues to express most interest in fighting Pimblett (22-4 MMA, 7-0 UFC), whom he faced off with after knocking out Charles Oliveira to capture the vacant belt in June.
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Tsarukyan (23-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) returned with a dominant submission of Dan Hooker this past Saturday at UFC Fight Night 265 and is convinced that Topuria is ducking him. Tsarukyan is baffled how Pimblett’s resume can warrant a title shot.
“No way at all,” Tsarukyan told Daniel Cormier of Pimblett’s chances vs. Topuria. “How many people destroyed Michael Chandler? He’s 40 years old. He has six losses, two wins in the UFC, and a four-fight losing streak. He’s nobody. UFC tried to make him like Arturo Gatti. They wanted to make him like a superstar. He showed good fights, but he is not an elite fighter. There is levels.
“Paddy cannot beat even Oliveira, cannot even beat Hooker, he cannot beat (Dustin) Poirier, he cannot beat (Justin) Gaethje, he cannot beat (Max) Holloway, he cannot beat me. If he’s going to beat even Gaethje, I’m going to say, ‘Yeah, this guy is good.’ He sucks. … Where’s Bobby Green and where’s grappling? My brother, he never trained MMA. I swear if they’re in a street fight, my brother will kill him so easy. Bobby Green is not a high-level fighter. Send him to Dagestan for two-three years.”
Tsarukyan earned a title shot when he defeated Charles Oliveira at UFC 300 in April 2024. However, just a day before his lightweight title fight against Islam Makhachev at UFC 311 in January, he withdrew due to a back injury.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Arman Tsarukyan gives Paddy Pimblett no chance to beat Ilia Topuria
