Arman Tsarukyan Refuses Friendship With Ilia Topuria, Declares Islam Makhachev Beats “El Matador” Any Day

Arman Tsarukyan has once more given his two cents on a potential Islam Makhachev vs. Ilia Topuria superfight.

Makhachev vs. Topuria could happen later this year as predicted by the former’s manager. For now, the reigning lightweight titleholder is locked in to meet interim champion Justin Gaethje on June 14 at the White House.

Makhachev, on the other hand, is expected to make the first defense of his welterweight strap in August and would most likely face Ian Machado Garry, as rumors suggest.

Arman Tsarukyan belives Islam Makhachev can beat Ilia Topuria any day in any weight class

During a recent candid chat with Adin Ross and N3on, when the latter asked Arman Tsarukyan:

“Who do you think is going to win between Ilia [Topuria] and Islam [Makhachev]?”

Tsarukyan replied:

“Islam [Makhachev].”

Meanwhile, Adin Ross added that he thinks Makhachev can beat Topuria at welterweight. However, if the bout is at 155 pounds, “El Matador” has a great chance of beating the Dagestani wrestling maestro. Nevertheless, Arman Tsarukyan believes Makhachev wins, and weight classes don’t really matter.

Arman Tsarukyan believes Ila Topuria can’t beat Islam Makhachev in either division [155 or 170] ‼️

(Via @adinross ) pic.twitter.com/ELINh2nXry

— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA) April 5, 2026

Adin Ross wants Arman Tsarukyan and Ilia Topuria to be friends

Adin Ross wants Arman Tsarukyan and Ilia Topuria to bury the hatchet and believes the lightweight champion and the top contender can be really good friends. However, Tsarukyan made it clear that he would make peace with Topuria only after he fights him:

“After [the] fight, I will stop beefing with Ilia Topuria.”

Check out Arman Tsarukyan’s comments below:

Adin Ross and N3on were BEGGING Arman not to fight Ilia Topuria because they think it's TOO DANGEROUS but Arman refused to make peace until AFTER THE FIGHT 😳👀

"I think you guys would be good friends."

"After fight."

"There's no point of beefing bro."

"After fight." pic.twitter.com/liW5EtvoD8

— Cage ☆ (@CageClips) April 5, 2026

According to insiders, Tsarukyan will face the winner of the Ilia Topuria vs. Justin Gaethje bout. However, there have been talks that Topuria, after one successful title defense at lightweight, plans to move up to 170 pounds to fight Makhachev and chase three-division glory. Hence, a Topuria vs. Tsarukyan bout could never be in the charts.

For now, the Armenian wants to serve as backup for the aforementioned lightweight title unification bout.