MMA coach lambasts Mauricio Ruffy over mistake in Arman Tsarukyan fight at UFC 331

Mauricio Ruffy has faced a significant amount of criticism over his most recent MMA fight, particularly its latter part. A number of fans and experts have opined that there was a major lapse in concentration that caused him to get knocked out cold. 

Legendary MMA coach Ray Longo has echoed similar sentiments, pointing out what Ruffy did wrong in the high-profile matchup against Arman Tsarukyan. 

MMA coach Ray Longo cites Mauricio Ruffy's UFC 331 mistake as cautionary advice to fighters

Mauricio Ruffy established himself as a force to be reckoned with earlier this year, scoring back-to-back finishes over Rafael Fiziev and Michael Chandler. The Brazilian striking savant's TKO victories over the veteran fighters led him to a high-profile fight against Arman Tsarukyan, which co-headlined UFC 331 in Los Angeles on September 19. It was said to be a crucial matchup, a deemed UFC lightweight title eliminator. 

Many observers noted that Ruffy's tendency to fight at long range and utilize darting entries/exits in accurate striking exchanges would trouble the shorter Tsarukyan. He did manage to seemingly secure a flash knockdown, which he later spoke about, against his Armenian-Russian foe.

However, Tsarukyan turned the tables in the closing seconds of the round when they were clinching against the Octagon fence. "The Batman" landed a pair of elbows that knocked his taller opponent out. 

During a recent appearance on the Anik & Florian podcast, veteran MMA coach Ray Longo -- akin to numerous fans and experts -- slammed Mauricio Ruffy for supposedly losing focus toward the end of round one. 

Citing Ruffy's loss and seemingly warning other fighters, Longo stated, "Man, it looked like it was going to go his way. But you can't fall asleep. We've seen it a couple of times. You've got 10 seconds. Some guys think that, oh, it's just 10 seconds. Nobody's gonna do anything... That is f**king unacceptable. It's just unacceptable, man, how you could do that."

He added, "Critical mistake. Like, the bell doesn't even mean anything. That ref has to step in." 

Ray Longo alludes to the striker vs. grappler psychological aspect in Mauricio Ruffy's fight with Arman Tsarukyan at UFC 331

Heading into UFC 331, more than a few analysts cautioned that the Mauricio Ruffy vs. Arman Tsarukyan fight mustn't be viewed as a run-of-the-mill striker vs. grappler matchup. They underscored that Tsarukyan was more than capable of holding his own, perhaps even outdoing, when up against dangerous strikers. 

Ray Longo seemed to reference the same psychological aspect of the showdown, indicating that Ruffy likely didn't view Tsarukyan's striking as a notable threat to him. He believes the Brazilian striking maestro was mainly worried about defending himself against the grappling attacks Tsarukyan would launch at him. 

Longo said, "He was just concerned with not getting taken down and had no respect for anything else."

On that note, Longo suggested that Ruffy has now lost via submission and KO/TKO in the UFC despite being a talented fighter who could've prevented the defeats by focusing better. 

Watch Ray Longo discuss Mauricio Ruffy's loss to Arman Tsarukyan at UFC 331 below: