Demetrious Johnson believes Arman Tsarukyan has done enough to earn a shot at the UFC lightweight championship following his first-round knockout victory over Mauricio Ruffy at UFC 331.
Tsarukyan stopped Ruffy inside the opening round of their co-main event matchup on Saturday, strengthening his case for a title opportunity in the competitive lightweight division.
While speculation has emerged that reigning lightweight champion Justin Gaethje could potentially run back his matchup with Ilia Topuria, the fighter he defeated to win the title earlier this year, Johnson believes Tsarukyan should be next in line.
Speaking with Israel Adesanya on his YouTube channel Monday, the former UFC flyweight champion shared his preferred path forward for the division, suggesting that Tsarukyan should face Gaethje in February.
“I think Arman versus Justin is next, and then a lot of people (are) like, ‘Hey what about Ilia Topuria?’ Ilia can wait. Ilia can fight Max (Holloway), Ilia can fight Charles (Oliveira) and then he can fight the winner of Justin Gaethje and Arman Tsarukyan, so I like that. I think you do it (the Arman vs. Justin title fight) in February.”
Whether the UFC follows that proposed matchup or pursues an alternative route for the lightweight division remains to be determined.
