It appears Arman Tsarukyan is deep in competition mode even though he is yet to lock in his next UFC match-up. ‘Ahalkalakets’ is already booked for two future Real American Freestyle (RAF) events, the latest of which is against ex-UFC star Tony Ferguson. Fans, however, are divided about the booking.
Tsarukyan has maintained impressive activity in 2026, taking part in four consecutive RAF events so far. He will next be seen against Keelon ‘Mugzy’ Jimison at RAF 09 on May 30.
Interestingly, earlier today, the promotion confirmed that the UFC lightweight contender will also face Ferguson at RAF 10 on June 13 in St. Louis.
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In comparison, Tsarukyan last graced the UFC octagon during 2025’s Qatar event against Dan Hooker. This was also his only appearance of the year. While fans appreciate the fighter’s activity, the RAF 10 booking itself has them divided.
@Mattisinthezone wrote:
“This some Jake Paul s**t.”
@SizzlingMma chimed in:
“Dumb. Does RAF typically not give a s**t about trying to make compelling matchups?”
@The_Most_Hye opined:
“Essentially confirming UFC has no plans to book him until mid-August at the earliest, which is a criminal waste of talent.”
@figarotactic commented:
“Old-school Tony would’ve beat the p**s outta this guy, but in 2026, I guess we have to watch him get thrown around.”
Check out a few more responses below:
In comparison, Ferguson was last seen in action in a unanimous decision win over Warren Spencer during his Misfits Boxing middleweight title defense in December. A former UFC interim lightweight champion, ‘El Cucuy’ was once one of the most dominant fighters in the world’s premier MMA promotion, holding a 12-fight win streak from 2013 to 2019.
Arman Tsarukyan names his dream RAF matchups for Khamzat Chimaev
Earlier in April, Khamzat Chimaev was officially announced as having signed with RAF. ‘Borz’s’ friend and training partner, Arman Tsarukyan, sees many interesting matchups for him in the promotion.
During a recent interview with Ariel Helwani, ‘Ahalkalakets’ named several current and former UFC stars ‘Borz’ could take on right away, and a few Olympic-level talents he could build toward:
“I wanna see [Chimaev vs.] Bo Nickal as well, because Bo Nickal is a legit wrestler, and now he is in MMA. Then I would like to see [him against] Colby Covington, Chris Weidman. There is 97 kg [at RAF], but Khamzat is not that big for 97 kg. Kyle Snyder is good, but [Chimaev] needs to do [at least] two with guys from MMA, and then he can compete with Olympic wrestlers.”
Edited by Ujwal Jain