Arman Tsarukyan will not be denied.
The presumptive No. 1 lightweight contender likely punched—or more accurately, elbowed—his way to a title shot Saturday at UFC 331 with vicious first-round knockout over Mauricio Ruffy. It took Tsarukyan some time to get his offense going with Ruffy showing strong takedown defense to prevent Tsarukyan from taking the fight to the ground, but eventually Tsarukyan bullied his way into range to land a cracking elbow.
That shot visibly stunned Ruffy, allowing Tsarukyan
to follow with a second elbow that left Ruffy flat on the mat.
It was the sixth straight win for Tsarukyan, who said afterward he knew he needed a finish to convince the matchmakers to make him lightweight champion Justin Gaethje’s next opponent. After that, it looks like everyone is convinced, with several of Tsarukyan’s peers anointing him as the man to beat at 155 pounds.
Check out how the pros reacted to Tsarukyan’s incredible knockout below.
