LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 19: Arman Tsarukyan of Georgia reacts after a knockout victory against Mauricio Ruffy of Brazil in a lightweight fight during the UFC 331 event at Crypto.com Arena on September 19, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC) Crisis averted! Arman Tsarukyan, who spent the last two years of his MMA career in lightweight purgatory, appears to have finally earned another crack at the 155-pound crown after fumbling the bag in his first attempt at UFC 311 back in early 2025. Tsarukyan smashed and trashed fellow lightweight contender Mauricio Ruffy in the UFC 331 co-main event last Sat. night (Sept. 19, 2026) at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. Not only did “The Batman” have to win back the trust of UFC CEO Dana White, he also had to put on a performance good enough to make fans forget about former UFC lightweight champions Ilia Topuria and Charles Oliveira, who each had (separate) claims to the division throne. Unfortunately,“El Matador” is coming off a brutal championship loss and “Do Bronxs” was previously defeated by Tsarukyan. First comes the victory lap: You just got slept by a streamer 🥱 — Arman Tsarukyan UFC (@ArmanUfc) September 20, 2026 Followed by the title shot: Title shot secured 👊🏼 — Arman Tsarukyan UFC (@ArmanUfc) September 20, 2026 And lastly, the kill shot. 🚨 Someone just put $14,181 on Mauricio Ruffy to WIN vs Arman Tsarukyan, with a $54,376 payout on Polymarket Are people sleeping on Ruffy? 👀 #UFC331 pic.twitter.com/AlExCg4Rss — Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) September 19, 2026 Whether or not White agrees with the Arman title shot remains to be seen. “I came here to save this city,” Tsarukyan said after his win over Ruffy. “Today, Los Angeles is going to have fun. I knew I was going to finish him. First elbow is from this coach, second elbow is from this coach. Title fight or [Facebook founder] Mark Zuckerberg [next], I want to fight you next.” For more UFC 331 results and highlights click here.