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Arman Tsarukyan Disagrees with UFC Official Rankings, Places Jon Jones at Number One Pound-For-Pound

Arman Tsarukyan Disagrees with UFC Official Rankings, Places Jon Jones at Number One Pound-For-Pound Arman Tsarukyan thinks Jon Jones belongs at the top of the UFC P4P rankings. As it stands, ‘Bones’ is…

Arman Tsarukyan thinks Jon Jones belongs at the top of the UFC P4P rankings.

As it stands, ‘Bones’ is sitting in the No. 2 spot on the promotion’s pound-for-pound list, one spot behind reigning UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev. Of course, not everyone agrees with that, including UFC CEO Dana White who has gone on record multiple times arguing in favor of Jones being listed as the undisputed GOAT of MMA.

During a recent interview with ESPN MMA, Tsarukyan revealed that he subscribes to the same belief as White, suggesting that ‘Bones’ should be the top-ranked fighter on the coveted list with Makhachev dropping down one spot.

“In my opinion, he’s number two,” Tsarukyan said. Number one is Jon Jones, for me personally. But for sure, in the 155-pound division, he’s the pound-for-pound best.”

Emanating from the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, the promotion will return to pay-per-view on Saturday, January 18 for UFC 311, headlined by a lightweight title tilt between Makhachev and Tsarukyan.

It will be Tsarukyan’s first time competing for UFC gold after amassing an impressive 9-2 record inside the Octagon, including noteworthy wins over Beneil Dariush and Charles Oliveira.

Arman Tsarukyan not concerned with potential p4P ranking

While a win over Makhachev will secure Tsarukyan his first UFC title, he doesn’t expect to become the promotion’s new No. 1 P4P fighter.

Nor does he care.

“No, I don’t care about that,” Tsarukyan said when asked about potentially occupying the top P4P ranking. “I just care about the title. Not the money, the hype, or the followers — just the title. That’s my goal. I wake up thinking about the title, and I go to sleep thinking about the title.”

Arman Tsarukyan Disagrees with UFC Official Rankings, Places Jon Jones at Number One Pound-For-Pound

Arman Tsarukyan thinks Jon Jones belongs at the top of the UFC P4P rankings. As it stands, ‘Bones’ is…

Arman Tsarukyan thinks Jon Jones belongs at the top of the UFC P4P rankings.

“In my opinion, he’s number two,” Tsarukyan said. Number one is Jon Jones, for me personally. But for sure, in the 155-pound division, he’s the pound-for-pound best.”

Emanating from the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, the promotion will return to pay-per-view on Saturday, January 18 for UFC 311, headlined by a lightweight title tilt between Makhachev and Tsarukyan.

It will be Tsarukyan’s first time competing for UFC gold after amassing an impressive 9-2 record inside the Octagon, including noteworthy wins over Beneil Dariush and Charles Oliveira.

Arman Tsarukyan not concerned with potential p4P ranking

While a win over Makhachev will secure Tsarukyan his first UFC title, he doesn’t expect to become the promotion’s new No. 1 P4P fighter.

Nor does he care.

“No, I don’t care about that,” Tsarukyan said when asked about potentially occupying the top P4P ranking. “I just care about the title. Not the money, the hype, or the followers — just the title. That’s my goal. I wake up thinking about the title, and I go to sleep thinking about the title.”

Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Gameplans Go Out the Window With a Punch, Explains Arman Tsarukyan

Arman Tsarukyan subscribes to the popular Mike Tyson quote, ‘Everyone’s got a plan until they get punched in the…

Arman Tsarukyan subscribes to the popular Mike Tyson quote, ‘Everyone’s got a plan until they get punched in the mouth.’ Especially when it comes to UFC legend Khabib Nurmagomedov.

On January 18, Tsarukyan will put that theory to a test, though it won’t come against Nurmagomedov. Instead, it’ll be against the Hall of Famer’s protege, Islam Makhachev, who just happens to be the promotion’s reigning lightweight world champion. Tsarukyan will challenge the ‘Dagestani Destroyer’ for the 155-pound crown when the UFC heads to the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles for the first pay-per-view event of 2025, UFC 311.

Nurmagomedov is expected to be in Makhachev’s corner that night and will likely go into fight night with a well-thought-out game plan when Makhachev seeks his fourth successful defense of the lightweight strap.

Undoubtedly helping matters will be the fact that Makhachev already holds a victory over Tsarukyan under the UFC banner, besting the Armenian at UFC on ESPN+ 7 in April 2019.

Arman Tsarukyan knows how to disrupt makhachev’s game plan

Of course, Tsarukyan thinks that successfully throwing Makhachev off his game will come down to one not-so-simple task — hit the man really, really, hard.

“I think game plans can go out the window when you get hit with a hard punch,” Tsarukyan said in an interview with ESPN MMA. “If I hurt him really badly, he’ll forget about his game plan. It’s the same for me. In my last fight, Oliveira choked me, and after that moment, I forgot my game plan completely. That’s why I have to hurt him very badly in the first round. Then it won’t matter what game plan they have.”

Tsarukyan certainly has a knack for knocking his opponents out. In his nine career wins under the UFC banner, he’s scored highlight-reel KOs against Christos Giagos, Joel Alvarez, Joaquim Silva, and Beneil Dariush.

Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Gameplans Go Out the Window With a Punch, Explains Arman Tsarukyan

Arman Tsarukyan subscribes to the popular Mike Tyson quote, ‘Everyone’s got a plan until they get punched in the…

Arman Tsarukyan subscribes to the popular Mike Tyson quote, ‘Everyone’s got a plan until they get punched in the mouth.’ Especially when it comes to UFC legend Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Undoubtedly helping matters will be the fact that Makhachev already holds a victory over Tsarukyan under the UFC banner, besting the Armenian at UFC on ESPN+ 7 in April 2019.

Arman Tsarukyan knows how to disrupt makhachev’s game plan

Of course, Tsarukyan thinks that successfully throwing Makhachev off his game will come down to one not-so-simple task — hit the man really, really, hard.

“I think game plans can go out the window when you get hit with a hard punch,” Tsarukyan said in an interview with ESPN MMA. “If I hurt him really badly, he’ll forget about his game plan. It’s the same for me. In my last fight, Oliveira choked me, and after that moment, I forgot my game plan completely. That’s why I have to hurt him very badly in the first round. Then it won’t matter what game plan they have.”

I Only Knew Islam Makhachev as Khabib’s Cousin, Says UFC Contender Arman Tsarukyan

For most people, Islam Makhachev is known as the reigning UFC lightweight world champion. Some may even know him…

For most people, Islam Makhachev is known as the reigning UFC lightweight world champion. Some may even know him as the best P4P fighter on the planet. For Arman Tsarukyan, he was just the cousin of Octagon icon Khabib Nurmagomedov.

On Saturday, January 18, Tsarukyan will attempt to become just the second man to defeat Khabib’s cuz when the two headline UFC 311 inside the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles. On that night, ‘Akhalkalakets’ challenges Makhachev for the 155-pound crown in a rematch five years in the making.

It will be the pair’s second-ever meeting — their first coming at UFC on ESPN+ 7 in April 2019. Makhachev came out on top, handing Tsarukyan a unanimous decision loss in the Armenian’s promotional debut.

Since then, Tsarukyan has gone 9-1 inside the Octagon, including wins over Beneil Dariush and Charles Oliveira in his last two outings. Those victories thrust Tsarukyan into the top spot in the lightweight division, setting the stage for a rematch more than five years in the making.

Tsarukyan knew Islam Makhachev would be tough just because of his relationship with Khabib

Long before Tsarukyan ever stepped foot inside a cage with Makhachev, he knew who the ‘Dagestani Destroyer’ was. However, it wasn’t Makhachev’s reputation for stacking bodies inside the Octagon that got Tsarukyan’s attention — it was his relation to ‘The Eagle.

“I knew him very well because he’s Khabib’s cousin, and he already had five or six fights in the UFC,” Tsarukyan told ESPN MMA. “I always watched his fights and Khabib’s fights. So, when I heard it was Islam, I already knew he was a southpaw, a good wrestler, and very skilled.

“I was more excited because everyone in Russia knows him. I thought it was a good fight for me, and when I beat him, people would talk about me.”

Arman Tsarukyan Did Not Intend to Fight for a UFC Title: “Just Wanted to Get Into the Top 15.”

When Arman Tsarukyan first made his UFC debut, fighting for a title never crossed his mind. Fast forward six…

When Arman Tsarukyan first made his UFC debut, fighting for a title never crossed his mind.

Fast forward six years and that’s exactly what ‘Akhalkalakets’ will do when he steps back inside the Octagon on January 18. On that night, Tsarukyan will square off with reigning and defending lightweight world champion Islam Makhaev at UFC 311 inside the Intuit Dome in The City of Angels — Los Angeles, California.

It will be the second-ever meeting between Makhachev and Tsarukyan after the ‘Dagestani Destroyer’ spoiled Tsarukyan’s UFC debut all the way back in April 2019.

Since then, Tsarukyan has gone 9-1 under the UFC banner with his most recent wins coming against Beneil Dariush and former 155-pound titleholder Charles Oliveira. Those victories secured him the top spot in the lightweight division, guaranteeing him a long-awaited rematch with Makhachev.

After getting his first UFC win, Arman Tsarukyan knew he wanted to be a champion

Looking back on his career, Tsarukyan recalls never once thinking about challenging for a UFC title. That is, until the first time he got his hand raised inside the Octagon.

“When I got to the UFC, I didn’t think about the UFC belt and everything,” Tsarukyan said in an interview with ESPN MMA. “I just wanted to get into the top 15. But after my first win, I wanted to be a champion, and I started thinking about the championship. When Islam got the belt, I said I want to fight Islam for the belt. So, it’s a rematch and a fight for the belt.”

Overall, Arman Tsarukyan is 22-3 in his mixed martial arts career with nine of his victories coming in the UFC. He goes into his first title shot riding a four-fight win streak including back-to-back knockouts against Joaquim Silva and Dariush.