Ilia Topuria under fire: Arman Tsarukyan credits Dan Hooker’s courage, questions the champion

After submitting Dan Hooker to UFC Qatar, Arman Tsarukyan wasted no time in calling out UFC lightweight kingpin Ilia Topuria. After fight night, the No. 1 ranked UFC lightweight contender launched another sly attack on Topuria, accusing the latter of dodging him. The Armenian, meanwhile, praised Hooker for taking the fight, despite it being a stylistically tougher battle for ‘The Hangman’.

At UFC Qatar, ‘Ahalkalakets’ dominated Hooker on the ground and also on the feet before submitting him in the second frame. With this win, the 29-year-old has once again cemented his place as the No. 1 contender. Earlier this year, when Islam Makhachev was the 155-pound champion, Tsarukyan was set to challenge him but was forced to withdraw in the final hours due to a back injury.

Dana White wasn’t too happy about the withdrawal and denied Tsarukyan another title shot until he proved himself again. On the other hand, Topuria has shown no interest in the fight against him.

After Hooker’s submission, Tsarukyan posted on X:

Respect to Dan Hooker for taking the fight. He has bigger b*lls than the division champion”

Check out Arman Tsarukyan’s comments below:

Ilia Topuria’s brother introduces ‘El Matador’ to defend lightweight straps

Ilia Topuria’s brother, Aleksandre, who is also coming off a win at UFC Qatar, was asked at the post-fight presser what he thinks should be the next step for ‘El Matador’. Alexander said:

“The perfect scenario would be to fight for the [welterweight] title, but I think he should defend the title in the lightweight division.”

Check out Aleksandre Topuria’s comments about Ilia Topuria below:

After defending his featherweight throne just once, Topuria moved up to lightweight and secured the vacant title by knocking out Charles Oliveira at UFC 317. His next fight is rumored to be against Justin Gaethje or Paddy Pimblett.

However, now Arman Tsarukyan wants to fight the champion and has even called out the promotion as he is looking for a quick turnaround in January 2026.