Arman Tsarukyan is set to bypass a potential fight with Justin Gaethje in favor of a UFC lightweight title rematch. The Armenian contender appears unwilling to wait for Gaethje as he pushes for another shot at the championship.
Reports suggest Arman Tsarukyan is angling to skip past a prospective matchup with Justin Gaethje and push directly for a second crack at the UFC lightweight title, though the move has not been officially confirmed.
Tsarukyan, 29, holds the number-one contender position in the lightweight division and carries a 23-3-0 record fighting out of American Top Team. The Russian-born Armenian is a physically unique presence at 170 cm tall yet boasts a 183-cm reach, and his game is built around relentless forward pressure and wrestling. He averages 3.26 takedowns per 15 minutes, making him one of the more dangerous grapplers in the division, and mixes in 3.85 significant strikes per minute with 50 percent accuracy.
Standing across the division is champion Justin Gaethje, whose record sits at 28-5-0. The 37-year-old American, training out of Genesis Training Center, is one of the sport's most prolific volume strikers, landing 6.48 significant strikes per minute at an impressive 58 percent accuracy. The five-foot-eleven Gaethje fights orthodox and relies almost entirely on his striking, averaging just 0.33 takedowns per 15 minutes and recording no submission attempts to speak of.
Why it matters
- Tsarukyan is the ranked number-one contender, so a title rematch carries clear divisional logic at 155 pounds.
- Bypassing Gaethje removes one of the most dangerous striker matchups available, a fight that would have tested Tsarukyan's takedown-heavy approach against elite knockout power.
- If confirmed, the move reshapes the lightweight landscape and leaves Gaethje's near-term path uncertain.
- The story remains unconfirmed, meaning the matchup could still shift depending on promotional negotiations.
