Arman Tsarukyan Clarifies Dana White ‘Firing’ Rumors After Islam Makhachev Fight Withdrawal
Recently, Arman Tsarukyan shared his candid thoughts about his relationship with Dana White. Tsarukyan also expressed his wish to step in as the official backup for the UFC 324 headliner, in which Justin Gaethje and Paddy Pimblett will compete for the interim lightweight title.
In the meantime, on December 17, ‘Ahalkalakets’ will take on Mehdi Baydulaev at the ACBJJ 20 tournament for the Stars Belt, and on December 30, under the Hype FC banner, he will grapple with Sharaputdin Magomedov.
At the ACBJJ press conference, ‘Ahalkalakets’ was asked if he was almost fired by the promotion after pulling out of the UFC 311 title fight in January. Tsarukyan said:
“He [Dana White] didn’t say that. He said that he ‘COULD have fired Arman… People think that I have a bad relationship with Dana White. It’s not true.”
Check out Arman Tsarukyan’s comments below:
Tsarukyan withdrew because of a back injury, and since then, he has been trying to work his way up for another undisputed title shot.
Dana White on UFC’s Relationship With Arman Tsarukyan: “We’re not sideways with him”
After the promotion announced UFC 324 and UFC 326, and Arman Tsarukyan’s wish to fight for the interim title and the BMF championship were denied, the MMA community started questioning the UFC’s relationship with Tsarukyan.
In response to this hot issue, Dana White stated in an interview with The Mac Life that the Armenian fighter is aware of why he was not offered another title shot and that the UFC does not “dislike him.” White said:
“It’s not like I’ve confronted Arman. Arman’s a man. He knows how this played out. He knows how this all went down behind the scenes. He knows. We all fu**ing know… He’s here. You know what I didn’t do? We haven’t cut him. We’re not sideways with him. We don’t dislike him.”
Check out Dana White’s comments below (13:17):
