For Arman Tsarukyan, the fight started long before he stepped on the mat in Philadelphia. It began at LAX, when he was kicked off an American Airlines flight for what the company called a rules violation. But according to Tsarukyan, the airline’s official reasoning doesn’t tell the whole story, and his version of events paints a picture of a simple request that spiraled out of control.

The lightweight contender boarded an American Airlines flight at LA to reach Philadelphia, where he was set to face Urijah Faber in the co-main event of RAF 8. However, while the aircraft was still taxiing, a dispute broke out between Tsarukyan’s team and the flight crew, prompting them to quickly return to the gate and escort Tsarukyan and his three companions off the aircraft. The airline cited refusal “to follow federal regulations” as the reason for deboarding them. Now, the Armenian is firing back with his side of the story.

“I had a team. There are 11 of us. We are getting in the plane, and it was three empty seats,” Arman Tsarukyan told Chael Sonnen at the RAF 8 presser. “I asked the lady because my seat was next to my friend, and he’s a little bit big. I said, ‘Ok, maybe there is an empty seat.’ I asked the lady, ‘Can I sit here?’ She didn’t say yes. She said, ‘Where’s your seat?’ I said, ’29 A.’ She said, ‘Go there.’ I said, ‘Why are you rude?’ Then I sat in 30 A because it was empty.

“Someone called my friend, and he picked up the phone, and my other friend had opened the table. And she came and said, ‘Close your table.’ He said, ‘Ok, ok, I’ll do that.’ Then someone called, and he took the phone. Then all three of us got kicked out of the plane. The other seven, they flew. Then we got the jet, and they said, ‘Bro, why didn’t you tell me you were flying in the jet? We would like to get out, too.'”

Arman Tsarukyan also reflected on the staff’s behavior before reaching the event. He took shots at American Airlines by writing, “Got kicked off the flight,” on Instagram while adding a middle finger and a laughing emoji. Later, the UFC lightweight contender also uploaded a picture of one of the airline staff and captioned it, “Rude and unprofessional.” After getting kicked out of the flight, though, Tsarukyan booked a private jet to Philadelphia to make it to the RAF 8 event. While boarding the private plane, he again trolled the airline with another post, “Hope they’re not gonna kick me off of this plane.”

Well, that’s definitely an eventful trip to Philadelphia for Arman Tsarukyan, but he’s not the only one to get kicked off a plane. Before him, Frontier Airlines had removed Khabib Nurmagomedov from a flight late last year after the UFC legend allegedly refused to leave the exit row despite multiple requests.

As Tsarukyan’s flight story gained traction, his opponent, Urijah Faber, took the opportunity to land a hilarious jab at the press conference.

Urijah Faber playfully spins Arman Tsarukyan’s flight drama at RAF 8 presser

After Arman Tsarukyan appeared at the event, he and Urijah Faber started trading some words to hype up their fight. However, the Team Alpha Male coach was aware of how the UFC lightweight’s American Airlines saga unfolded, so he decided to share a spinoff version to troll his opponent in a very playful way that left the entire room full of laughter.

“I know there is a plane incident, right?” Faber told Tsarukyan at the RAF 8 event. “Everybody heard the plane incident. Nobody heard about my plane incident because of Arman. I got flanked in the middle seat, which wasn’t supposed to be negotiated, by two Armenian heavyset twins. Both had hair that grows right on their forehead and back, just like Arman, which is a sign of testosterone, really.”

Well, the former 135 lbs veteran is fighting a much bigger opponent in size at RAF 8 this Saturday, which is headlined by Merab Dvalishvili and Henry Cejudo. Arman Tsarukyan’s flight incident, which came after his bad-blood rivalry with Georgio Poullas at RAF 7, has now brought extra attention to the star-studded grappling card.

While the airline drama provided some pre-fight entertainment, Tsarukyan’s focus must now shift to the much larger challenge waiting for him in the cage against Urijah Faber.