Arman Tsarukyan dominated Urijah Faber in their RAF wrestling match with a 13-1 victory, throwing Faber off the mat as he had promised during the press conference. After the match, Tsarukyan immediately called out Colby Covington, vowing to achieve a 10-0 score against him. Tsarukyan stated he will not give Covington a single point and will fight with maximum effort, contrasting with the one point he gave Faber out of respect for his age. The Armenian fighter declared his intention to make people forget about Covington not just as an MMA fighter but as a wrestler as well. Additionally, the post notes that Khamzat Chimaev has signed with RAF and Bo Nickal responded with a challenge to the champion.
Arman Tsarukyan made good on a pre-match promise at a recent RAF wrestling event, dismantling Urijah Faber by a lopsided 13-1 score and throwing him off the mat just as he had pledged at the press conference.
Faber, the 47-year-old American legend known as "The California Kid," carries a professional MMA record of 35-11-0 and built his reputation at Team Alpha Male over a storied career. The six-foot-two Tsarukyan showed him little mercy on the mat, conceding only one point — a gesture Tsarukyan himself described as a sign of respect for Faber's age.
Immediately after the match, Tsarukyan set his sights on Colby Covington, vowing a shutout performance and declaring his intention to make people forget Covington's reputation not only as an MMA fighter but as a wrestler. Tsarukyan stated he would fight Covington with maximum effort and would not surrender a single point.
The event also brought a significant organizational announcement: Khamzat Chimaev, the 32-year-old Middleweight ranked first in his division and tenth pound-for-pound, has signed with RAF. The 15-1-0 fighter known as "Borz" trains out of Allstars Training Center and is one of the most active grapplers in the sport, averaging 5.29 takedowns per 15 minutes. His arrival immediately drew a response from Bo Nickal, the 30-year-old American prospect out of American Top Team Happy Valley, who holds a 9-1-0 record and issued a direct challenge to Chimaev following the signing announcement.
Why it matters
- Tsarukyan's dominant showing and callout of Covington signals his ambitions extend well beyond MMA competition into the grappling circuit
- Chimaev's RAF signing sets up a potential showdown with Nickal, two of the most decorated wrestling-based fighters in combat sports today
- Nickal's challenge to Chimaev adds immediate intrigue to RAF's growing roster of high-profile talent
