Is Arman Tsarukyan’s chance to fight for the lightweight belt over? Well, after Dana White’s UFC 324 announcement, many believe the Armenian’s dream to clash for the 155 lbs might get delayed a lot. However, it seems ‘Ahalkalakets’ has found a way to immediately include himself in the title picture. With only 38 days left, Tsarukyan seems open to a quick turnaround, but making weight would surely be a problem.

On January 24th, Justin Gaethje vs Paddy Pimblett will fight for the interim lightweight belt, with the winner of this fight guaranteed to get a title shot against Ilia Topuria. But there’s always a chance that some mishaps might happen where one of the headliners might not be able to make the walk. In those situations, a backup always saves the day. With that in mind, the number one-ranked lightweight has no problem assuming that role once again. 

Arman Tsarukyan Says He’ll Take UFC 324 Fight on 5 Days’ Notice

“Even if it’s 10 days before or 5 days, I’ll be accepting the fight. I’ll have my weight checked and be in shape. I’ll train, spar and I’ll try not to get injured when I’m sparring. But I will push myself. I will celebrate New Years in Armenia, then I’ll go to Las Vegas for the Pimblett vs Gaethje fight. It’s not easy, our weight is not easy, but I’ll be ready.” Arman Tsarukyan told Absolute Championship of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

Well, the UFC didn’t officially announce the Armenian as the backup. Still, if the 29-year-old lightweight keeps himself battle-ready, then the UFC CEO might appreciate it and actually keep him as the backup. Tsarukyan was the backup for UFC 317: Topuria vs Oliveira fight, so there’s no reason to believe that he won’t take that role once again, with a potential title shot on the line. However, it’s not gonna be easy because he’s significantly overweight right now.

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“Arman Tsarukyan steps on the scale and shows his current weight ⚖️ 78.75 kg (173.5 lbs)” Championship Rounds posted a video of Tsarukyan weighing on X.

Now, the prime lightweight contender actually crossed the welterweight limit with his latest weigh-in. So, he would need to cut 18.5 lbs of weight in 38 days in order to become a backup for the UFC 324 co-main event. Not impossible, but very tough. Especially for ‘Ahalkalakets’ who Dana White claimed had cutting issues during UFC 311 headliner fight against Islam Makhachev.

So, whether Tsarukyan gets the opportunity, only time will reveal. Still, the discussion around whether he deserved the title shot remains the talk of MMA town, a heated discussion in which Henry Cejudo has a contrary view.  

Henry Cejudo understands Dana White’s decision 

Dana White’s decision to distance Arman Tsarukyan from the lightweight title shot definitely brought some hard questions his way. At the UFC Qatar main event, the Armenian defended his rankings against a dangerous Dan Hooker — wasn’t that enough? Well, to the head honcho, it isn’t. He explicitly mentioned that ‘Ahalkalakets’ had his chance at UFC 311, and he missed it. Understanding the logic, the former two-division champ agreed with White on keeping Tsarukyan on the sidelines.

“I thought Arman Tsarukyan deserved it. But I can see why Dana White and the UFC didn’t give it to him, because he didn’t fight when they needed him to. So he had the opportunity. Now he says, ‘Hey, get to the back of the line’. And if I’m Arman, then I’m looking to fight as frequently as I possibly can.” Henry Cejudo told Red Corner MMA.

Well, it’s true that the 29-year-old 155er couldn’t manage to fight at UFC 311, and White was definitely not a fan of how they had to replace him with Renato Moicano in the main event. Also, that was followed by Tsarukyan not fighting for over a year, as he was recovering from injury. Moreover, finding fights also became a tough ask as Pimblett and Gaethje weren’t much interested. All of these issues piled up and worked against the Armenian.

So, there’s definitely quite a bit of merit behind Henry Cejudo’s statement as he believes the promotion still wants to look at Tsarukyan’s stability. That said, as he’s ready to make a quick turnaround and become a backup, do you think Dana White would actually keep his wish? Let us know in the comments section below.