“Fighting for the 155-pound title in September or October after [Ilia Topuria vs. Justin Gaethje],” recently top-ranked contender Arman Tsarukyan revealed his potential timeline for a title shot in the division. However, Hunter Campbell & Co. has not given the green light yet. In the meantime, a UFC champion recently warned Tsarukyan and even hinted that the promotion could choose Max Holloway over him for the next title shot.

Former UFC champion and current BMF champion Max Holloway will return to the Octagon this weekend at UFC 326, where the Hawaiian superstar will try to settle his “unfinished” business against Charles Oliveira in a rematch. Even before the matchup happens, UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski already expects Holloway to come out on top, just like last time.

Will Max Holloway step in for Arman Tsarukyan in the next title bout?

“He’s (Max Holloway) taken out Gaethje, who’s the interim champ,” said Alexander Volkanovski in his latest YouTube video. “He’s taken out Dustin Poirier, who’s fought for the title how many times? And now he’s going to beat Charles Oliveira, if he obviously wins after this fight… How’s he not fighting for the title? I believe he should have already fought for the title, to be quite honest.”

With a win at UFC 326 over the former lightweight champion, Holloway could make a strong case for himself, and with him receiving backing from his former rival, Campbell could get a reason to book ‘Blessed’ ahead of Tsarukyan. However, many analysts and fans consider Arman Tsarukyan deserving of the next title shot after Topuria faces Gaethje to unify the lightweight titles.

The Armenian star might even have earned a title shot at UFC 324, but the promotion instead gave the spot to Paddy Pimblett to face Justin Gaethje in the interim lightweight fight. Still, the UFC hesitated to rely on Tsarukyan for the inaugural card because of his unpredictable nature and his Russian ethnicity.

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Since then, Arman Tsarukyan has worked extensively on his PR to boost his popularity among Western fans and push for fan support that could pressure the UFC into giving him a title shot through appearances on various podcasts. Even so, Volkanovski now believes that this PR push could backfire.

“I think he’s doing a great job promoting himself. You just got into a fight – that’s not going to look good for the UFC, obviously, because you don’t want to give them excuses to pull you, you know, like, ‘No, you ain’t getting it.’

Especially when, you know, they’re probably not happy with him, and Arman knows they’re not happy with him. He’s talked about it. So, he’s trying to get on their good books. That fight in the wrestling raf? That could hurt him a little.”

But that’s not all to worry about. On top of that, this week, Arman Tsarukyan let his unpredictable nature show during a brawl at the RAF wrestling event, where he attacked his opponent with unexpected punches.

Tsarukyan explains his side of the RAF 06 brawl

Last week’s RAF 06 matchup between Arman Tsarukyan and Georgio Poullas was expected to be a standard freestyle wrestling contest. However, the main event quickly disappointed as the two fighters escalated it into a brawl, which ended with ‘Ahalkalakets’ landing a clean punch. As a result, many speculated that Dana White might not approve of Tsarukyan’s behavior, echoing concerns from his past actions at UFC 300 and UFC Qatar.

At first, critics targeted Arman  Tsarukyan for his aggressive response. But reviewing the footage showed that Poullas continued to provoke him, using illegal moves such as eye pokes, slaps, and finger grabs. Eventually, the Armenian snapped and landed a clean punch. Still, while the UFC questioned his discipline, Tsarukyan explained the situation openly on “The Ariel Helwani Show.”

“No, no, this is not my fault,” Arman Tsarukyan said on “The Ariel Helwani Show.” “Everybody is on my side now. I was waiting six minutes, he was punching me. How long do you want me to wait?”

They should be happy that a UFC fighter didn’t let somebody beat him up. UFC fighter number one went into freestyle wrestling, beat the freestyle wrestler, and showed the level of the UFC.”

So, what do you think about Dana White and Co.’s stance toward Arman Tsarukyan? Do you think they will finally give the Russian-Armenian star a title shot, or will they snub him again? Let us know your thoughts below.