Arman Tsarukyan called out Ilia Topuria after his UFC victory, leading to a Twitter exchange where both fighters downplayed personal animosity, framing their rivalry as media hype.
Ilia Topuria caught wind of Arman Tsarukyan’s callout after UFC Qatar.
Tsarukyan put on a show, dominating and submitting Dan Hooker in the main event of Saturday’s UFC Fight Night in Doha. That win marked his fifth straight victory.
Immediately, he turned his sights on Topuria and the lightweight title during his post-fight chat with Michael Bisping. And he kept that energy going in the UFC Qatar post-fight press conference.
By Sunday, Topuria had fired back at Tsarukyan on Twitter.
“Arman, every time we meet, you freeze like a scared duck,” Topuria tweeted. “You know I handle you however I want. I fight whoever the UFC chooses. Remember I slapped you? You just laughed, then act like a gangster. Keep going, you’re on the right path… just a few levels below me, kid.”
Not long after, Tsarukyan had his own words for Topuria.
“Bro, you touched my neck like we were taking a family photo and now you’re calling it a slap online?” Tsarukyan shot back on Twitter. “The clip is clear—your insecurity’s even clearer. I don’t need to act tough for Twitter. My work is inside the cage. Want to know what a real slap feels like? I’ll be happy to educate you. See you soon, El Pato.”
Before the event, Tsarukyan told MMA Fighting he’d face Topuria in January if the UFC asked. He reiterated that after his win, saying it’s not personal.
“Honestly, we have nothing personal,” Tsarukyan said at the press conference. “This is all media, all hype. We’re just hyping the fight. If it were personal, we’d have settled it by now.”