Tsarukyan reveals surprising opponent for Topuria

Arman Tsarukyan believes Michael Chandler could welcome Ilia Topuria back.

Arman Tsarukyan believes that Ilia Topuria’s comeback will be against a well-known opponent, but one that no one is really expecting. In an interview on the UFC's YouTube channel, Arman Tsarukyan was asked what he thinks Ilia Topuria’s current status is following his loss to Justin Gaethje. In that fight, Ilia Topuria suffered one of the biggest upsets we’ve seen in a long time, and he sustained serious damage, especially to his face. It’s unclear how long his recovery will take, but when he returns, he will surely do so with plenty of motivation.. Arman Tsarukyan believes that Michael Chandler should be his first opponent and would be a sensible stepping stone before throwing Ilia Topuria straight back into a title fight.

“He’s still recovering and probably next for him a fight with Michael Chandler and then come back and fight for the title. Who else? After this fight, he needs someone easy, an easy fight, and then after that fight come and fight again”

he said.

Before his loss to Justin Gaethje, Ilia Topuriahad a very successful streak, building a 17-0 record and capping it off with three consecutive KO victories over Charles Oliveira, Max Holloway, and Alexander Volkanovski. However, the lightweight division continued to evolve while Ilia Topuria was on hiatus. It’s hard to say where he might end up after a comeback. The next title fight actually seems to be set already. On September 18, Arman Tsarukyan and Mauricio Ruffy will face off, and the winner is supposed to fight Justin Gaethje afterward. Arman Tsarukyan is still a little unsure whether a victory would really guarantee him a title shot right away, but he naturally wants to keep his spot in the rankings. Assuming Arman Tsarukyan does indeed win the title, and Ilia Topuria has made his comeback by then, a title fight between the two isn’t all that unlikely. The two have had a bit of a feud for years, even though they’ve never actually fought each other. If Arman Tsarukyan becomes champion, he sees that as a possibility himself.

“There’s a lot of top guys. Me, Oliveira still. Paddy Pimblett. Topuria. Max Holloway is tough as well. But when I beat Ruffy, I’m going to fight for the title and then I can pick who I want to fight”

he said.

So the future of the lightweight division is very interesting, and especially what's next for Ilia Topuria. We can only look forward to what comes next.