Could Arman Tsarukyan be the worthy opponent that Islam Makhachev has been waiting for? The former, who has already faced Khabib’s prodigy before, is coming off wins against Beneil Dariush and Charles Oliveria. The upcoming UFC 311 could become a dangerous wrestling war even though Tsarukyan’s 5 submissions are nothing compared to Makhachev’s 12.

Flashback to UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Oleinik in 2019, when the world witnessed the duo battle and take each other down. It was a chess match rather than a slugfest, and now the fans expect a similar display for the rematch. As the fight approaches, everyone is busy predicting who will win, so let’s take a look at their statistics now that almost six years have passed since they clashed.

UFC 311: Islam Makhachev vs. Arman Tsarukyan stats

Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California, United States will witness the duo fight again as the Dagestani defends his UFC lightweight gold for the main event at UFC 311. But what makes this upcoming headliner so interesting? It is the fact that they have fought before so they know each other’s strengths and weaknesses.

Islam Makhachev won by a unanimous decision over the Armenian star in their previous match. Now, after almost six years, Islam Makhachev is the Pound for Pound King, and Tsarukyan has earned the #1 spot in the lightweight category. Right now, Team Khabib’s crowning glory has everything: #1 in p4p and the title. Makhachev submitted the former UFC interim lightweight champion Dustin Poirier in his last fight at UFC 302 and is on a 14-fight win streak. 

Tsarukyan is coming off a split decision win over the former UFC lightweight champion, Charles Oliveira at UFC 300 and is on a 4-fight win streak. He also won 9 fights via KO. If we were to compare the stats, Tsarukyan stands at 22-3-0 and Makhachev is at 26-1-0.

Surprisingly, both have been victorious in their last fights, respectively. As for their fighting style, the Russians use a southpaw, and the ‘Ahalkalakets’ uses the orthodox style. When it comes to their first fight, which happened in April 2019, Makhachev had a 16-win record and only 1 loss and it was his 7th fight in UFC.

We should give credit to the Armenian because he faced the seasoned Dagestani for his UFC debut. After three rounds of intense ground and pound, Islam Makhachev won the fight via a unanimous decision by the judges’ scorecard. So what about now? They both have progressed much more and have very clearly worked on their skill sets in the past 6 years.

Makhachev vs. Tsarukyan breakdown and prediction

From the moment that he decided to enter the UFC, Makhachev has been trying to make a legacy and prove that he is one of the best fighters in the world. The 33-year-old Russian phenom is sitting on the throne of UFC’s lightweight division, so clearly he is one of the best. However, the world of mixed martial arts always has turntables and uno reverses waiting around the corner. For Makhachev, this next test is against a familiar foe– Arman Tsarukyan.

However, he did give props to his former opponent, who was a debutante during their first fight. “It was one of the hardest fights, of course, but it’s not the toughest fight, because of the five rounds with (Alexander) Volkanovski—that was crazy,” he said to UFC. He continued, “Maybe I was underestimating (Tsarukyan) because it was short notice. Nobody knew him. He didn’t have a name, and I’d never watched him fight. And he did well in that fight.”

The talented 28-year-old Armenian is already dominating UFC and will get the chance to settle the score with his former opponent very soon. We should remember that he already comes from an affluent background. So for him, it’s all about the fight and the legacy. The Armenian said to Red Corner MMA, “Islam is good in all aspects [of MMA], but it’s not like there is an aspect where you can’t outsmart him… It’s possible to outplay him at boxing, kickboxing, wrestling, and on the ground. You just need to be ready for anything.” According to him, most fighters do not find success against the Russian star because, by the time the cage door closes, they are trapped inside their heads.

When it comes to UFC pundits like Michael Bisping, he thinks that the Armenian might take the cake this time. He even discussed the fight with TNT’s Adam Catterall and Nick Peet, where he made a bold prediction. He noted, “The toughest test stylistically will be going down in January, though, so he might lose that belt. It’s a rematch; he had a good showing the first time and took that on short notice, so that makes me a little unsure about my pick of Islam Makhachev. I think he will do it, but he might lose it in January.” It is true that when they first met Tsarukyan was a newbie to the UFC but now he is as seasoned as Makhachev.

“Are you surprised at the odds of Islam vs. Tsarukyan? Islam is over -400 while Tsarukyan is 3-1 underdog,” said Chael Sonnen via his YouTube channel. He was shocked that people were underestimating Tsarukyan and ‘The Bad Guy’ favored the Armenian star rather than Makahchev. On top of that, Tsarukyan is training with Adriano Martins, who was the only man to have defeated Islam Makhachev.

As a last resort, we even asked ChatGPT’s help for the predictions. What did the AI say? Both fighters have their well-rounded styles, but Makhachev holds the edge with his calm demeanor against pressure. So who do you think will win? Share your predictions below!