Arman Tsarukyan is not treating UFC 331 like a golden ticket with his name already printed on it. He knows Mauricio Ruffy is dangerous, he knows Justin Gaethje is holding the lightweight belt, and he knows the UFC can make contenders jump through one more flaming hoop whenever it feels like it.
Tsarukyan meets Ruffy in the five-round lightweight co-main event on September 19 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. The fight has title-eliminator stink all over it, especially after the UFC already moved through the original Charles Oliveira plan, but Tsarukyan told MMA Fighting that he is not banking on promises until a contract is in front of him.
“In this sport, not everything is guaranteed,” Tsarukyan said. “You’ve got to be ready; you’ve got to beat [anyone]. If they give me one more fight, I’ll beat; 10 more fights, I’ll beat, and eventually I’ll become a champion.”
Watch Tsarukyan discuss the UFC 331 opponent shuffle below.
Tsarukyan Wants The Belt And A Busy Schedule
This is where the story gets spicy. Tsarukyan has spent the past year trying to claw his way back into a title picture that keeps changing faces. He was booked to challenge Islam Makhachev at UFC 311 before a fight-week injury blew that up, then watched the division keep moving while he had to rebuild momentum. MiddleEasy already covered how Dana White had to separate Tsarukyan and Ruffy at the UFC 331 faceoff, so nobody should be pretending this is some sleepy co-main.
Tsarukyan said he wanted the title fight next, but Gaethje changed the board after beating Ilia Topuria at UFC White House and then making it clear he was done for 2026. That left Tsarukyan with a stay-busy fight in Los Angeles, which he framed as the obvious move.
“I was waiting for the title fight, but Gaethje, he doesn’t want to fight this year, so they give me an opportunity to fight in my almost-hometown, in L.A., and I said yes,” Tsarukyan said. “Oliveira, I said yes. Unfortunately, he pulled out because of the situation with his friend, but Ruffy is a great fight, too. Wrestler vs. striker. I think the fans are going to love the fight, and I’m excited as well.”
The lightweight belt is currently in that weird UFC traffic jam where everybody can see the exit, but nobody trusts the GPS. Gaethje is looking toward 2027, Ruffy is trying to skip the long contender line with one massive upset, and Tsarukyan is trying to prove he is still the most obvious next problem for the champion. Ali Abdelaziz has already teased a massive 2027 Gaethje fight, which makes Tsarukyan’s urgency pretty easy to understand.
If Tsarukyan does get there, he says he does not want to become one of those champions who wins the belt and disappears like rent is due. He wants a champion schedule that actually keeps the division moving.
“I wish I’m going to be active in UFC,” Tsarukyan said. “And when you’re champ, you can fight as much as possible. That’s why I become champion: stay active. I’m young and hungry. I’m not that big for 155, as well. I can cut weight and fight at least three times a year.”
That sounds great in August. The hard part is surviving Ruffy in September. The Brazilian is being thrown into a monster spot after building real buzz around the Tsarukyan matchup, and a clean win over a contender this highly ranked would detonate the lightweight queue. Tsarukyan can talk about three title fights a year, but first he has to stop Ruffy from stealing his whole 2027 plan in one night.
