Renato Moicano took a big risk taking the biggest fight of his life on extremely short notice. However, the gamble didn’t pay off as he came up short against division kingpin Islam Makhachev last week. But just how short he came up has surprised many, including Arman Tsarukyan, whom ‘Money’ had replaced on barely two days’ notice at UFC 311. After all, Moicano was ranked #10 going into the PPV, and no one was really expecting him to win. But the fact that he submitted to the Dagestani in the very first round may be down to nerves, according to the Armenian.

Tsarukyan went on retired MMA superstar and former UFC champion Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson’s ‘JAXXON’ podcast a few days ago, where he was asked by co-host Bear Digedio his thoughts on Moicano’s performance against the Dagestani champ. To which the lightweight star had a characteristically analytic answer.

“I watched the fight and I was thinking like Moicano could do like more than he did,” the #1 ranked lightweight said. “You were surprised he got finished?” Jackson interrupted. “It was so easy, I was surprised, like, he tapped so easy. But like maybe he was nervous or something, I don’t know. But like Islam is one of the best, you know, and I wanted to see a couple more rounds,” Tsarukyan added.

The Brazilian did look good in the opening seconds of the round, managing to catch the champ with a couple of good shots early on. But, Makhachev proved yet again why he is the pound-for-pound #1 fighter in the world and submitted Moicano with a lethal D’Arce choke in the final minute of the opening round. And Tsarukyan feels ‘Money’ could have maybe taken the fight to the next few rounds if he wasn’t so nervous.

It would be some consolation for ‘Money’ that he made nearly $1 million (950k to be exact) for his troubles, which is significantly more than he would have made fighting Beneil Dariush, as was originally planned. However, the biggest loser after UFC 311 seems to be Tsarukyan, who is out of the title picture for now.

Who could get the lightweight title shot next instead of Arman Tsarukyan?

Dana White is clear- Arman Tsarukyan will have to “go back to the drawing board” and earn a title shot again. What does that mean exactly? Well, based on Charles Oliveira‘s case, it might take just one good win before the Armenian finds himself in the title picture again.

Some may feel this is unfair. After all, Tsarukyan suffered an injury leading up to UFC 311 and was unable to move at all a couple of days before the fight. This makes his withdrawal understandable. That is why most fans would like to see the #1 ranked lightweight face the champ in his next fight. Especially because of the stylistic challenge he poses for Makhachev.

But since the UFC CEO has made clear that that won’t be the case, who could be Makhachev’s next opponent? Charles Oliveira seems to be the only option and is likely to get his long-awaited rematch with the lightweight champ. In the meantime, Tsarukyan will have to fight at least one top-ranked contender, perhaps more, to try and get back to title contention. What do you think about Arman Tsarukyan’s take on Renato Moicano’s UFC 311 showing?