Arman Tsarukyan does not rate Ilia Topuria's wrestling!!! Things have been heating up over the last two years between Arman Tsarukyan and Ilia Topuria and Tsarukyan is not one bit impressed with his wrestling. He thinks amateur fighters in gyms in Dagestan would take him down with ease and ground and pound him. Arman is recognized as one of the best grapples in the UFC where as Ilia is at the top of the ladder with his hands. Arman confirmed he is next in line for the lightweight title in the first Quarter and named Ilia as a potential opponent depending on what current lightweight champion Justin Gaethje decides to do. Who would win this?
Arman Tsarukyan has taken aim at Ilia Topuria's wrestling, saying the Spaniard's takedown defense would not survive contact with grapplers from Dagestan. Tsarukyan suggested that amateur fighters training in gyms there could take Topuria down with ease and punish him with ground and pound.
The comments come after roughly two years of tension between the two lightweights. Tsarukyan also said he is next in line for the lightweight title and named Topuria as a possible opponent, depending on what current champion Justin Gaethje decides to do.
Two lightweights, two styles
Tsarukyan, 30, is 24-3 and ranked second at lightweight. The Russian fights out of American Top Team and holds a 72-inch (183 cm) reach. His wrestling credentials show in the numbers: he averages 3.25 takedowns per 15 minutes, well above Topuria's 1.96. He has also been busy and successful of late. His most recent recorded fight was a first-round KO/TKO of Mauricio Ruffy on September 19, 2026, following a second-round submission of Dan Hooker in November 2025.
Topuria, 29, is 17-1 and sits atop the lightweight rankings and the pound-for-pound list. The Spanish fighter, nicknamed El Matador, lands 4.81 significant strikes per minute at 48 percent accuracy, against Tsarukyan's 3.78 at 49 percent. His most recent recorded fight was a fourth-round KO/TKO loss to Gaethje in a title fight at UFC Freedom 250 on June 14, 2026, the only defeat on his record. Before that came title-fight knockouts of Charles Oliveira and Max Holloway.
Why it matters
- Tsarukyan's callout leans on the clearest stylistic contrast in the division: his grappling against Topuria's striking.
- The two share the same height, five-foot-seven, but Tsarukyan owns a three-inch reach advantage (72 inches to 69).
- Any title picture runs through Gaethje, who holds the belt and whose plans determine who gets the next shot.
- Topuria's takedown rate shows he does wrestle, though Tsarukyan's figure is 1.29 per 15 minutes higher.
The numbers frame the argument Tsarukyan is making. One fighter is built around controlling where a fight takes place, the other around ending it on the feet, and Topuria's recent loss shows he can be beaten.
