Arman Tsarukyan vs. Christos Giagos: No chance for the American

On September 18, Arman Tsarukyan will fight Christos Giagos. If the Russian fighter wins, he will get a top opponent for his next fight.

Arman Tsarukyan is ranked #14 in the UFC lightweight contenders division. Christos Giagos is out of the top-15.

Tsarukyan came to MMA from freestyle wrestling, so he is very good on the ground. But he is also terrific on the feet. The fact is that if something goes wrong in standing, he always has a solution - wrestling, where he has never found worthy opponents.

He is often being called the Armenian Khabib. However, he does not like this comparison: 'Khabib Nurmagomedov is Khabib Nurmagomedov, and Arman Tsarukyan is Arman Tsarukyan.'

The 24-year-old Russian fighter of Armenian descent has 16 wins (5 by knockout, 5 by submission) and 2 defeats (by knockout and by decision) on his overall pro record. He was defeated by knockout at the very beginning of his career, back in 2015; it was his second pro fight. The second defeat, from Islam Makhachev, still keeps the fighter awake.

When you talk about Tsarukyan, it is impossible not to mention Islam Makhachev. Makhachev ignores Tsarukyan while he insinuates (and sometimes demands) a rematch in every interview. But the time has not come yet, and there is an opinion that it is a bad idea.

You learn a lot from your opponents, too. Once, I missed the foot sweep from Islam Makhachev - now it's my signature move. I do it myself to many people. I see it works. I would have fought Islam differently now. I breathe differently, my boxing has improved, my footwork, my wall wrestling is on a different level. I improved as a fighter, and I'd like to do this rematch, do a full camp."

Arman Tsarukyan

Christos Giagos got into the UFC as early as Tsarukyan did (at 24), but unlike the Armenian, he failed in two fights out of three and received a notice of dismissal. Outside the UFC, Giagos was knocked out for the first time in his career. The difficult task was handled by the hard-hitting Josh Emmett, who will successfully drop people in the UFC in the future.

The 31-year-old American has a total of 19 wins (7 KOs, 4 submissions) and 8 losses (1 KO, 4 submissions) on his pro record.

It is very hard to imagine that Gyagos have something surprising for Tsarukyan in this confrontation. Arman is stronger in each of the fight components, and his motivation is beyond the limit. He honestly believes he is the top lightweight in the world. And he has to prove it, even now. Dana White may go crazy and give him a fight with one of the top 8 fighters, and they are all severe guys out there.

By the way, 1xBet came to the same conclusions:

• Tsarukyan to Win for 1.09;
• Giagos to Win for 7;
• Full distance – Yes for 1.6;
• Full distance – No for 2.15;