Ahead of the biggest fight of his career to date, Arman Tsarukyan has tried to find an edge over Islam Makhachev during his UFC 311 training camp.
In this Saturday's UFC 311 main event, Arman Tsarukyan will finally get the chance to avenge his loss to Islam Makhachev six years ago when they met at UFC Russia in Tsarukyan's UFC debut.
Ahead of their rematch, Tsarukyan has been in insane form and will look to dethrone the Russian as he looks to break the UFC record for most title defenses in the history of the lightweight division.
Although 'Ahalakalakets' recently admitted that he is not 100% committed to MMA during his training camp, he has enlisted the help of the only fighter to ever beat Makhachev.
Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
Arman Tsarukyan spat blood after sparring with Adriano Martins
In 2015, Makhachev was knocked out in the first round by Adriano Martins at UFC 192, losing his then 12-0 undefeated record.
The Russian then proceeded to clear out anyone who stood in his way, becoming the pound-for-pound number one fighter in the process, now ruling the lightweight division.
With the 33-year-old looking relatively unbeatable as a champion, Tsarukyan has been training with Martins ahead of UFC 311, and has admitted to spitting blood after one of their sparring sessions.
'I'll tell you honestly: his punch is insane. It is not just a stroke of luck, as people say,” Tsarukyan began to explain in an interview with Ushatayka.
“He hit me like that twice in sparring, and… no one has ever hit me like that. He caught me once and my eye swelled up and turned completely blue.
“I don't know, I've been spitting blood for two weeks, man. His power is of course, absolutely insane. He just hits incredibly hard. That right hook and that right hook to the left, they're just crazy,” he continued.
Due to Makhachev's success after his loss to Martins, much of the fanbase claimed that the Brazilian's punch brought good luck, but Tsarukyan disagrees.
“Not surprising at all. “I also thought it was a lucky punch, but after sparring with him… When he landed that right hook on me, I realized it's better to box this guy from a distance,” he finished.
What's next after UFC 311?
If Makhachev does indeed break the UFC record with a fourth successful title defense, he has previously hinted at a possible move to the welterweight division to fight Belal Muhammad.
Former champion Charles Oliveira is seemingly next in line for the lightweight title after a victory against Michael Chandler at UFC 309.
Despite Tsarukyan claiming he will only fight for money if he takes the title, he has also highlighted 'Do Bronx' as the only worthy next challenger in the 155lb division.
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