Justin Gaethje Names Arman Tsarukyan as His Next Opponent If He Defends His Title

It’s been so many months that Arman Tsarukyan’s name has been discussed over and over again for a title shot. However, given that he pulled out at UFC 311, Dana White and the UFC made him work to earn a title shot. And now, with a win over Mauricio Ruffy, it seems he will finally get a title shot against Justin Gaethje. Meanwhile, talking about his future, ‘The Highlight’ stated that he will surely fight Tsarukyan if he defends the title next.

Justin Gaethje Is Ready to Fight Arman Tsarukyan

Recently, on the Flagrant podcast, Gaethje was asked if he would fight McGregor. The champion said the Irishman has one fight left on his UFC contract, so a fight between them could happen. However, when asked if McGregor would be fully healthy, Gaethje joked that the best case for him would be McGregor getting hurt within the first five seconds of the fight anyway now.

Subsequently, ‘The Highlight’ said Tsarukyan would be next if he decides to defend his title. Gaethje said the Armenian is next in line, but he does not know when he will fight again. For now, the champion wants to enjoy being champion for the rest of the year before making a decision about his future.

In his words, “ is the next in line. If and when I defend this championship, that will be who I fight. I just don't know right now. I'm just going to enjoy being the champion for the rest of the year. I'm going to make a business decision and a life decision whenever the time comes.”

It seems like Gaethje isn’t sure about his future or whether he will really fight again. He said on the podcast that he isn’t really sure if he will ever fight again. If he walks away from the sport, then Ilia Topuria vs. Tsarukyan might finally happen. However, nothing is fixed yet.

Arman Tsarukyan Thinks Justin Gaethje Could Choose Ilia Topuria Over Him

Tsarukyan believes Gaethje could choose to fight Ilia Topuria instead of him if he gets the choice. ‘The Batman’ feels the champion would pick Topuria because he has already beaten him once and knows he can beat him again. However, the Armenian also believes Gaethje may only have a few fights left before retiring. He said he would be happy to fight the American champ and add his name to his winning streak.

“If they give him the opportunity to pick me or Ilia, he would pick Ilia because he already beat him. He knows he can beat him twice. I’d be very happy to fight him because I know he has a couple more fights and he’s going to retire. It would be amazing to have him on my win streak,” Tsarukyan stated.

The future of the lightweight division looks really good, as almost any matchup could lead to a great fight.