Missing an opportunity to fight for the championship title will have repercussions. And this time, it’s Arman Tsarukyan who’ll have to pay for missing out on the action against Islam Makhachev. Well, ‘Ahalkalakets’ had no choice because he injured his back. And an injured fighter is nothing short of a liability for the fight promotions, don’t you agree? That was why Dana White announced that the Armenian wouldn’t get a title shot when he returned. However, White’s words ignited some conspiracy theories, that the UFC head honcho had to address.

At the UFC 311 post-fight press conference, the UFC CEO was asked whether Tsarukyan would get rebooked to fight Makhachev. And White replied, “He’s going back to the drawing board. I don’t want anybody to fight hurt, ever. We’ve been in these positions before, went down there with the doctor… You miss opportunities sometimes, and he did. We’ll see how this plays out for him next year.” Instead, we might get to see Charles Oliveira to go up against the LW champ at UFC Brasil. 

But the topic was touched once again at the PowerSlap 11 press conference. A reporter pointed out that Tsarukyan was still the #1 lightweight contender in the rankings. There’s indeed nobody else who has a clearer title shot than him. But White’s decision to put him out of the title picture was evident too.

The reporter asked, “So, can we say that the fact that he wasn’t able to fight got you angry, or got the UFC upset?” After all, nobody can protect themselves from getting injured. That’s the way the world of MMA moves. The UFC head honcho answered, “I know there’s a lot of conspiracy theories out there about this. You’ll just have to watch and see how this plays out.”  

But what does Arman Tsarukyan think of the missed opportunity? If he doesn’t get to fight Islam Makhachev for the lightweight championship title next, who would we get to see go up against the #1 lightweight contender? It seems like Tsarukyan had already seen this film before. Even though he didn’t like the ending, he had to stick with it.

Arman Tsarukyan agrees with Dana White regarding the LW title picture

On Uncrowned’s The Ariel Helwani Show, Tsarukyan pointed out that he actually agreed with Dana White’s decision. He said, “I’m not surprised, because when you have a big fight and you miss your opportunity, you gotta go back and fight with anybody and deserve to be again contender No. 1. But right now, I beat Charles Oliveira. He’s the No. 2. I don’t know. If it makes sense, I’ll fight with anybody.”

Of course, had the Armenian fought at UFC 311, he would’ve taken a boatload of money home. But unfortunately, he couldn’t even walk back then. Despite putting all his energy in promoting the fight and training to win the belt, he was left bedridden on the fight night. Now that he has been replaced for the title picture, who can we expect to see fight Tsarukyan next? 

Well, the #1 lightweight contender believed that he might go up against Charles Oliveira or Michael Chandler. And the timeline for his return went to April or May. He promised to take care of his back and claimed that he was down to fight anyone to build up the pace and reach Makhachev again. But as White said, we gotta wait and watch.

What are your thoughts on Tsarukyan’s removal from the title picture? Do you think it’s a vengeful response from the UFC? Let us know what you think in the comments down below.