Arman Tsarukyan has raised his hand for Alexander Volkanovski. Bloody Elbow reported Tuesday that Tsarukyan is open to a title fight with the featherweight champion, and that he expects a decision from lightweight champion Justin Gaethje soon. MMA Mania framed it with far less diplomacy. Its headline said Tsarukyan agreed to fight an “old, chinny Volkanovski” because Gaethje is “too scared to defend UFC title.” That is MMA Mania’s wording, so treat the bluntness as the outlet’s packaging. The core of the story is simple. Tsarukyan is frustrated that Gaethje hasn’t committed to a defense, and he wants it known that he’d take Volkanovski in a heartbeat.
The timing comes straight out of UFC 333 on Oct. 24. Volkanovski beat Movsar Evloev that night, then used his post-fight comments to ask for one specific thing. He wants to move up to lightweight and fight Gaethje, and he called it a retirement fight.
“That’s something I’d retire for. If they want to give me that opportunity, win or lose I’d retire,” Volkanovski said, per Championship Rounds.
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He also tried to get ahead of the obvious objection, which is that one champion jumping divisions to fight another tends to freeze two weight classes at once. “I don’t want to hold divisions up, but I believe we could do this and not hold the divisions up,” he said.
The Evloev win came with an asterisk Volkanovski seemed to enjoy. He revealed afterward that he was sick on fight night, and Happy Punch reported it was a chest infection. Championship Rounds, citing Oscar Willis, reported that Volkanovski refused to take any medication because he felt it would give him an unfair sporting advantage. His own explanation of the illness was pure Volk: “It’s all good, it’s a part of the game. I started getting sick, I was like ‘it would’ve been too easy if I wasn’t sick.’” Petr Yan also won on the card, and the two posed for a photo together afterward.
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The practical problem for everyone is Gaethje. Volkanovski’s request runs through him, and Tsarukyan’s title hopes run through him too. Until Gaethje picks a direction, the lightweight picture sits in a holding pattern, and Tsarukyan is clearly tired of standing in it. Offering to fight Volkanovski is a smart bit of leverage. It tells the UFC he’s ready for a title-level opponent right now, and it nudges the matchmakers to treat Volkanovski’s lightweight ambitions as a fight with Tsarukyan rather than a farewell gift with Gaethje.
My take: I’d rather see Tsarukyan vs. Volkanovski than Volkanovski vs. Gaethje, and I don’t think it’s close. A retirement fight against a champion who may not even want to defend is a nice story. Tsarukyan vs. Volkanovski is a real lightweight question with a real answer, and it doesn’t require anyone to wait on a phone call. Volkanovski just won a fight with a chest infection and no medicine because he thought cold pills were cheating. A man with that kind of stubbornness won’t turn down the younger guy who is openly calling him old. Gaethje’s answer is the domino, and Bloody Elbow’s report says Tsarukyan expects it soon.
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