Ilia Topuria rips ‘little weasel' Arman Tsarukyan ahead of Gaethje defense
UFC lightweight champion Ilia Topuria called Arman Tsarukyan a “little weasel” and dismissed the contender as irrelevant ahead of his title defense against Justin Gaethje at UFC White House in June.
Topuria won the 155-pound strap last summer when he knocked out Charles Oliveira at UFC 317, and Tsarukyan served as backup that night. But when the UFC created an interim belt in January, Tsarukyan got passed over in favor of a Gaethje-Paddy Pimblett matchup. Since then, Tsarukyan has competed in four RAF wrestling events and made the rounds on influencer streams, trying to build his brand outside the cage. Topuria told Yahoo Sports that none of it matters. “I’m really impressed with how dumb he is,” the champion said, per MMA Fighting. “He’s a retard. I don’t know, he looks like a kid. His mentality. He’s dumb as f*ck. Everything I saw about him on the internet is embarrassing. F*ck Arman, who cares about him?”
Topuria criticizes Tsarukyan’s social media persona
The Georgian-Spanish fighter took particular issue with Tsarukyan’s displays of wealth on social media, saying the lightweight is “spending your father’s money, not even yours.” Tsarukyan made headlines last fall for headbutting Dan Hooker at a UFC Qatar faceoff, then assaulting an opponent after a wrestling match at RAF 6. This past weekend he got thrown off an American Airlines flight and tackled Urijah Faber onto concrete during their RAF 8 bout, according to Sherdog.
“He’s not on my level,” Topuria said. “If we cross paths, I’m gonna break his jaw in the first round. What’s he going to do? He’s going to take me down? F*ck, please. Listen to me, calm down. Calm down, do your thing, go to those wrestling tournaments, do your streams, and whenever the moment arrives, just make sure to show up, and I’m going to do the rest. The little weasel.” Topuria has consistently downplayed a potential clash with Tsarukyan while lobbying for a move to welterweight to challenge Islam Makhachev.
Still, the champion said he would take the fight if the UFC asked. “If they call me tomorrow and they tell me that Justin is injured, I will fight Arman,” he said. “No problem.” Topuria defends his lightweight title against Gaethje on June 14.
Photo: inFocus media / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0
Original reporting:
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