Beneil Dariush hopes to fight for the UFC lightweight championship next. The #4-ranked lightweight will take on #8-ranked Arman Tsarukyan on December 2 at UFC Fight Night Austin. And the winner of their bout will be in line for a title shot in the near future.

And in an interview with TMZ Sports, the Iranian-American spoke about his plans if he beats Tsarukyan next month, including which fighter he would prefer to fight for the title and a possible fight against #2-ranked Justin Gaethje.

Beneil Dariush hopes to fight for the title soon

Dariush was asked by the interviewer if there was someone specific title holder he would like to face off against. The BJJ black belt named Islam Makhachev and Charles Oliveira as his preferred candidates. Dariush has not fought Makhachev yet, but he did fight Charles Oliveira at UFC 289 earlier this year.

“Currently the two guys I really want to fight are Makhachev and Charles Oliveira. Those are the two guys that I really want to fight,” Dariush told TMZ Sports.

‘Do Bronx’ defeated the former BJJ No Gi champion with ease in the first round. This emphatic victory earned Oliveira another title shot against Makhachev at UFC 294, which the Brazilian was forced to pull out of due to an injury less than two weeks from the October Abu Dhabi card. UFC boss Dana White has indicated that the Sao Paulo native will fight Makhachev for the title next.

And if Dariush can overcome Tsarukyan next month, he could make a very compelling case for, at the very least, a no. 1 title contender match against Gaethje. And the former BJJ world champion feels their fight is interesting stylistically.

‘Benny’ speaks about a possible Justin Gaethje clash

Dariush also spoke about a possible match with #2-ranked BMF title holder Justin Gaethje if he beats Tsarukyan. He complimented the New Orleans native for his power and footwork and felt that he is a very dangerous adversary. Dariush, with his world-class grappling, found ‘The Human Highlight’, with his excellent striking, an interesting matchup for him.

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“Yeah, Gaethje’s such a powerful puncher and he’s got good footwork and if he’s patient he’s very dangerous. And if he’s not patient he’s also very dangerous, but also he becomes more beatable. So he’s definitely an interesting matchup,” he added.

For Dariush, a lot depends on his December 2 main event clash against Tsarukyan. A win would almost guarantee he is one or two steps closer to a title shot. However, a loss, which would be his second on the trot, would set him back significantly.

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