No. 1 UFC lightweight contender Arman Tsarukyan says the “best case scenario” for him would be to face current 155-pound champion Islam Makhachev at Madison Square Garden.
Tsarukyan made an appearance on The MMA Hour on Wednesday during which he discussed the possibility of earning a title shot against Makhachev later this year and where and when that potential rematch could take place.
“It hasn’t been confirmed yet. We are just waiting for the matchmakers,” Tsarukyan explained. “I think they’re going to wait for the fight between Belal (Muhammad) vs. Leon Edwards and after that, they’re gonna figure out who is fighting where and when.”
Makhachev defended his title this past weekend at UFC 302 when he defeated Dustin Poirier, and afterwards said he wanted to pursue a second title in a different weight class.
Whether the 155-pound champion and current top pound-for-pound fighter in the sport moves up to challenge for the welterweight title in his next fight is yet to be determined.
If Edwards, the reigning welterweight champion, defends his title against Muhammad at UFC 304 in July then it’s possible the UFC could investigate booking an Edwards vs. Makhachev champion vs. champion matchup.
However, since both divisions have legitimate contenders currently without an upcoming fight scheduled, who knows if booking Makhachev into another super fight is a top priority. Makhachev fought former featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski twice in 2023 and won as the bigger champion both times.
Undefeated welterweight contender Shavkat Rakhmonov is 18-0 with 18 finishes in MMA and has positioned himself to fight for the title at 170 pounds.
Tsarukyan is the clear next-in-line at lightweight. He has gone 9-1 since losing to Makhachev with his lone loss a competitive five-round Fight of the Night with fellow top-five lightweight contender Mateusz Gamrot two years ago.
The 27-year-old Armenian explained a few days after his split decision win over Charles Oliveira at UFC 300 in April that he was offered the title fight vs. Makhachev at UFC 302, however, turned it down because he felt there wasn’t enough time to prepare for a championship bout against a fighter he had previously faced.
Prior to Makhachev’s bloody contest with Poirier, who the UFC went to with a title fight offer after Tsarukyan declined, Tsarukyan had been the fighter to give Makhachev the toughest test of the champ’s current winning streak.
Makhachev won a three-round unanimous decision and the contest earned both men a Fight of the Night bonus. Tsarukyan was making his UFC debut and accepted that matchup on relatively short notice. Both lightweights are vastly improved and have continued adding to their repertoire. A rematch in 2024 would present one of the best possible matchups in all of mixed martial arts regardless of weight class.
UFC 308 is scheduled for Oct. 26 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, and the UFC typically holds an annual pay-per-view event at MSG in New York during the month of November, however, the UFC has not yet made any official announcements about a Madison Square Garden event in 2024.
“It’s one of the best places in the world for fighting,” Tsarukyan said. “It’s a historic place, Madison Square Garden. A lot of fighters fought there, boxers, a lot of events was there, so I wanna fight there once in my life.”
Makhachev has fought in Abu Dhabi four times since 2019 as it is common for the UFC to put Muslim fighters on UAE cards. Tsarukyan fought in Abu Dhabi once at UFC 257 and wants to experience something different. Makhachev has also expressed a desire to compete at Madison Square Garden.
Tsarukyan speculated that if middleweight star Khamzat Chimaev beats Robert Whittaker later this month, he’d be a candidate to headline UFC 308, which would then free up Makhachev and Tsarukyan to hypothetically meet in November to headline at MSG.
“Hopefully they gonna send me contract,” Tsarukyan added.