Two of the most dangerous grapplers in the UFC lightweight division face off in a pivotal main event bout in Austin, Texas, on Saturday, December 2.
Both Beneil Dariush and Arman Tsarukyan have the mat skills to put their 155-pound rivals in big trouble, but who will prevail when they’re pitted head to head in a five-round headliner?
Dariush heads into the bout ranked fourth in the UFC’s lightweight division, but looking to bounce back after suffering his first defeat in five years. That loss came to former champion Charles Oliveira, as he saw an eight-fight win streak come to an end. Now he’s keen to return to winning ways to reposition himself for a title eliminator fight in early 2024. But he’s facing a tough test in Tsarukyan, who pushed current champion Islam Makhachev hard on his Octagon debut back in 2019.
Tsarukyan has also been in stellar form and, since his debut decision loss to Makhachev, he has won seven of his last eight, with his only loss coming in a very close matchup against Mateusz Gamrot. Currently ranked eighth in the division, Tsarukyan has the chance to catapult himself up the rankings and put himself in line for the rematch with Makhachev he craves.
Ahead of the matchup, former UFC welterweight title challenger and globally respected fight analyst Dan “The Outlaw” Hardy dives into the X’s and O’s of the matchup as he breaks down the matchup in “The War Room.”
Check out Dan’s analysis via the video below: