When Arman Tsarukyan earned the biggest victory of his career after beating Charles Oliveira at UFC 300, the timing couldn’t have been more perfect for ‘Ahalkalakets’ to fight for the lightweight gold. The whole MMA community was poised to see Tsarukyan take on Islam Makhachev in their long-awaited rematch and avenge his loss. But the fairytale came to an abrupt end when Tsarukyan pulled out of the fight due to a back injury. The disappointment for the UFC was huge, this even led to Dana White saying, “He will have to fight his way back to the title.” And the Armenian has been punished ever since.

However, recently, Tsarukyan started talking about his future fights and gave a humble callout to Paddy Pimblett. When asked whether he would like to face Pimblett next, Tsarukyan said, “Yeah, I’ll take that. I’ll take that because he has a big name, he just beat Michael Chandler, and he has a six or seven (fight) win streak. He never lose in the UFC, it makes sense. So, to get back and like, to get more fans from UK.”

While it is a great fight, it is unusual to see the #1 ranked fighter call out the #8th ranked fighter of the division. But that is where the UFC has left Tsarukyan. And adding on to this pile of misery for Arman is the ex-UFC star and former Strikeforce champion Josh Thomson. Thomson believes that Tsarukyan won’t even get to fight Paddy Pimblett next, as Josh thinks the Scouser will fight Justin Gaethje in a title eliminator, and the winner of that fight will face the winner of Oliveira vs Ilia Topuria at UFC 317.

Josh Thomson said, “In terms of the Paddy and Arman, uh, I think they’re going to be, I think it’s going to end up being Justin Gaethje and Paddy. And the winner of that will probably fight the winner of Ilia and Charles. I think they’re going to stick it to Arman a little bit longer. So, that’s my opinion.”

So is this how it’s going to be for Arman Tsarukyan? The man who backed out on the verge of a title shot is now struggling to secure the fight against opponents way beneath him in the rankings. What we all thought would be a small stint of anger on the fighter by the UFC is turning into a huge struggle for Tsarukyan. The question is, can he still find his way back to the top?

So what can possibly be next for the Armenian through this punishment? Will he be facing someone even below Paddy Pimblett? Or is the UFC going to take it easy on him soon? We can only guess that for the No. 1-ranked lightweight in the world.

What’s next for Arman Tsarukyan after the UFC’s punishment?

With Justin Gaethje and Paddy Pimblett potentially clashing in a high-stakes title eliminator bout, Arman Tsarukyan, the UFC’s No. 1 lightweight contender, finds himself navigating a complex path back to title contention. But what can he do to make it right again? Does he have the caliber to continue his generational run still, and continue winning before the UFC sees him as a contender again?

After withdrawing from his scheduled title fight against Islam Makhachev at UFC 311 due to a back injury, Tsarukyan has been eager to reestablish his position in the division. He has expressed interest in a five-round rematch bout with Charles Oliveira, stating, “If not Islam, it’s a five-round fight with Charles Oliveira.” Tsarukyan also considers a bout with Michael Chandler, noting, “He’s a tough fighter, but for me, it’s good to fight him because he has a good name.”

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Tsaruyan also shared his thoughts on the man heading to a potential title eliminator against Pimblett, Justin Gaethje. He talked about fighting him and didn’t mince his words while saying Gaethje is unworthy of a title shot. ‘Ahalkalakets’ said, “Gaethje wants to fight for the title. It makes sense to fight with me because nobody gonna give him title fight. It’s not gonna be fair.”

From Chandler to Pimblett to Gaethje, the distinctions are vast, but Tsarukyan has no other options; he has to fight whoever the UFC puts in front of him. If Paddy is indeed fighting Gaethje, especially after the recent callout by Arman, then it’s clear. The UFC is still upset with the Armenian, and his next fight is still a mystery. Can Arman Tsarukyan bounce back from this adversity? What do you think? Let us know in the comments.