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Arman Tsarukyan has done pretty well for himself in Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).

Currently ranked as the No. 1 Lightweight contender, Tsarukyan seemingly has his first career title shot secured after a big split decision win over Charles Oliveira at UFC 300 last month (April 13, 2024). Unfortunately for Tsarukyan, the offered UFC 302 title shot against the champion, Islam Makhachev, after his win was on too short of notice set for this weekend (Sat., June 1, 2024). Instead, perennial top contender, Dustin Poirier, will challenge the champion.

It would be a rematch with gold on the line should Tsarukyan challenge Makhachev after a Poirier win. Makhachev welcomed Tsarukyan to the promotion when they first fought in April 2019. It was a short-notice opportunity for Tsarukyan, and despite the split decision loss, he’s proven to be a legitimate elite 155-pound fighter. However, the champion believes he’s owed some gratitude for how things have played out.

“I think Arman should thank me, I signed him for a fight against me,” Makhachev told UFC Eurasia. “I wouldn’t call it a close fight even though many people say it was. I won every round. Arman still calls for a rematch. He had many opportunities to come out as a substitute. I know that before UFC 302 he was offered to fight me, either way, our rematch is inevitable, we’ll settle this soon.”

Since the Makhachev bout, Tsarukyan has gone 9-1 (22-3 overall). He’s won four in a row after a closely contested unanimous decision loss to Mateusz Gamrot in June 2022.

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 302 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6:15 p.m. ET (simulcast on ESPN2 at 8 p.m. ET), before the pay-per-view (PPV) main card start time at 10 p.m. ET (also on ESPN+).

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 302: “Makhachev vs. Poirier” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Benoit Saint Denis wants to restart his climb to the top of the lightweight division, and is hoping to fight twice on European soil in 2024.

The French lightweight, who recently lost to Dustin Poirier at UFC 299, returned to competition on May 18 in his native Paris with a unanimous decision win over fellow UFC fighter Marc Diakiese in a grappling contest at ADXC 4. Speaking with MMA Fighting ahead of the match, Saint Denis said, “I want to stay active and I want to fight as soon as possible.”

“I don’t know if it’s going to be [Manchester on July 27 at UFC 304], I don’t know if it’s going to be Paris [on Sept. 28],” Saint Denis said. “But my manager is doing great work, he’s working with the UFC to find the best place for me to compete. And I want to climb the rankings and get at the top. I feel like I do belong there. … In my last fight, I had a lot of stuff going on, but I’m more determined than ever to become the champion. I need to work a lot and I’m ready to do it. I’m on my way. I’m just waiting for the next opportunity.”

Saint Denis fought on the main card of UFC Paris in 2023 and beat Thiago Moises via second-round TKO. He loves the idea of once again entering the octagon in France.

“If I can be on both cards, I will be on both cards,” Saint Denis said. “If it’s going to be just Paris, it’s great as well. It’s a great opportunity. I just want to fight. I just want to show that I’m the best. And for that, I need a tough opponent. So I’m waiting for the UFC to work with my manager to find a matchup that everybody will want to see, and that will prove who is the next future contender.”

Saint Denis finished five opponents in a row after cutting down to lightweight before his loss to Poirier. Now he wants UFC to throw the highest-ranked athlete possible in front of him, so he can prove he’s a force to be reckoned with in the division.

“The names that are interesting to me the most are in order of the placement: [Islam] Makhachev No. 1, [Arman] Tsarukyan No. 2, Justin Gaethje, Poirier, all those guys,” Saint Denis said. “But, of course, you need to earn that. I will fight anybody that the UFC is going to give me, but I want to fight as high as possible.”

Poirier earned a shot at 155-pound champion Makhachev on June 1 at UFC 302 after his win over Saint Denis.

Saint Denis likes Poirier’s chances, but ultimately sees Makhachev as the favorite to win.

“It’s a great fight,” Saint Denis said. “Dustin Poirier is a very composed and experienced fighter. I do believe he has boxing on his side, but Makhachev is very well-rounded. I do believe he has watched my fight against Poirier, as well as Dustin’s fight with [Charles] Olivera. Everybody knows what the game plan is going to be. It’s going to be Makhachev trying to submit Poirier, and Poirier trying to knock out Makhachev.

“Makhachev [has] a bit more options. Makhachev can knock out or submit Poirier. But I see Poirier only having the knockout win eventually, and decision-wise, I also see Makhachev having the physicality to dominate the fight if it goes long. We will see who will win this fight. It’s an interesting fight anyway.”

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Dustin Poirier has to push the pace if he hopes to leave The Garden State with UFC gold wrapped around his waist.

After coming up short in two previous title bids against Khabib Nurmagomedov and Charles Oliveira, Poirier will step into the main event spotlight for one final shot at the 155-pound crown when he meets the former’s protege, Islam Makhachev at UFC 302 on June 1.

Though ‘The Diamond’ has already faced a who’s who of Hall of Fame talent inside the Octagon, his fight against the ‘Dagestani Destroyer’ may be his toughest yet. Speaking with TMZ days away from fight night, Poirier revealed the one mistake he has to avoid against a fighter like Makhachev.

“People who try to slow the fight down and make it a grappling chess match,” Poirier said. “Those have been the hardest fights for me to get going because I do best when it stays a fight. When it doesn’t slow down when it’s a scramble with punches flying and both of us bleeding, that’s where I do the best work, and I’m not trying to hold him down and win rounds.

“I’m trying to knock him out and hurt him and finish him and get out of there. That’s the way I fight” (h/t Bloody Elbow).

Dustin Poirier details his keys to victory at uFC 302

As Poirier broke down the one thing he knows he can’t do, he offered up a laundry list of equally important things he must do if he wants to “finish his story” inside the Prudential Center.

“Be in the moment, be reactive to all of his shots,” Poirier continued. “Don’t get overzealous throwing power shots where I take myself out of position and become an easy target for a trip or a takedown. Don’t play the clinch. There’s a list of things. Don’t play in the clinch with him. He has really good foot sweeps, really strong upper body. Keep it a fight. Use my wheels. Stay moving. Keep him guessing and then tighten him up.”

With a plethora of noteworthy opponents, an interim title to his credit, and a career guaranteed to make him a first-ballot Hall of Famer, Dustin Poirier has little left to prove, but that doesn’t mean he’s content walking away without checking off one last box on his to-do list in mixed martial arts.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Khabib Nurmagomedov is back! Well, sort of.

Widely considered the greatest lightweight of all time, Nurmagomedov retired from MMA in 2020 following the death of his father, Abdulmanap. After retiring, Nurmagomedov focused on continuing his father’s legacy through coaching, however, in recent years, Nurmagomedov even took a step back from that, working with his friend and teammate Islam Makhachev, but no longer cornering him during fights. However, that changes this weekend.

On Saturday, Makhachev puts his lightweight title on the line against Dustin Poirier in the main event of UFC 302 in Newark, NJ, and when he does, Nurmagomedov will be right there with him.

“Eagle has landed in Jersey City,” Makhachev told UFC officials while signing fight posters. “He’s going to be in my corner. Honestly, I’m very happy because he’s one of the best corner coaches, brother, friend. That’s it.”

Nurmagomedov last cornered Makhachev when he won the UFC lightweight title with a submission finish of Charles Oliveira at UFC 280. Following that win, Nurmagomedov helped Makhachev cut a promo for a pound-for-pound battle with then-featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

On the second episode of UFC 302 Embedded, lightweight champion Islam Makhachev makes coffee, former middleweight champion Sean Strickland gets into it with his friend Chris Curtis while sparring, Grant Dawson finishes his work at American Top Team, Paulo Costa arrives in New Jersey, Michal Oleksiejczuk visits the Statue of Liberty, and more.

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