“[Arman Tsarukyan] would bring out the best in Ilia [Topuria]”, per ex-Volk foe

Ilia Topuria stands atop the UFC lightweight throne, with many thinking Arman Tsarukyan could be the first challenger to his crown. A former UFC foe of Alexander Volkanovski, who has since moved to lightweight, has broken down that potential clash and has a defined pick for who he would see emerging as the victor.

Appearing on MMA Canada, Jeremy Kennedy was the fighter touching upon that potential lightweight bout with ‘JBC’, recently capturing gold at 155 pounds in his own right. After claiming the interim BFL lightweight belt against Jeremy Henry with a fourth-round submission win, snapping a four-fight losing skid for Kennedy, the Canadian combatant has a new coat of paint overtop his career in mixed martial arts after his BFL 84 win on September 4th.

Kennedy was quite studious as a featherweight and being well read on his division now extends to 155 pounds as he plies his trade at lightweight going forward. The Ilia Topuria versus Arman Tsarukyan fight being set up next is one that many MMA fans yearn to see and when giving an overview of that potential lightweight title fight in the UFC, Kennedy said,

“Yeah, that’s the fight I want to watch too. I think everybody wants to see, you know, everyone wants to see Ilia [Topuria] tested pretty good. I feel like [Arman] Tsarukyan, I don’t think he would win, but I definitely think he would bring out the best in Ilia.”

Hypothetical Arman Tsarukyan vs. Ilia Topuria title bout further broken down by Kennedy

When further getting into the X’s and O’s of how a potential Ilia Topuria vs. Armann Tsarukyan championship clash would play out, Kennedy continued,

“We would see a lot, just with athleticism, and a true lightweight number one contender is obviously Arman. So, everyone wants to see that and see how those styles match. I still have Ilia. I think he’s just got that kill shot and for 25 minutes you got to stay away from that. That’s a long time.”

“I know he’s got the grappling and wrestling pedigree to defend off a lot of the ’55 grapplers because that division is full of, you know, really good grapplers. So, yeah, I think he’ll get that done. But it’s definitely [going to] be a competitive fight and I think that’s what kind of intriguing for everybody.”