Arman
Tsarukyan believes fighters without exciting fighting styles
need to somehow find a way to draw attention.

Tsarukyan recently emphasized the importance of building a profile
outside the
Ultimate Fighting Championship for fighters who are unable to
find regular finishes or have control-heavy styles.

Arman Tsarukyan discusses controversy, UFC promotion and
building a profile outside the cage

Tsarukyan, who returns to the Octagon on Sept. 19 against Mauricio
Ruffy in the UFC
331 co-main event, believes controversy can help fighters who
don’t naturally attract fans with their performances.

“If you're a boring fighter inside the cage, controversies are
important for you,†Tsarukyan said in an interview with Russian
YouTube channel Vpiska. “Because if you're not here, you're not
there; you get cut from the game fast. But if you're a great
fighter and you knock people out and show that, you don't even need
to talk English.â€

The Armenian lightweight has increased his visibility outside the
promotion through social media and appearances for Real American
Freestyle, as well as his public association with streamer Nina
Drama. Despite his growing profile, Tsarukyan doesn’t believe the
UFC has played a major role in turning him into a recognizable name
and says he'll reach a whole new level once he's the champ.

“No, [I'm not a UFC star] because people know me not from the UFC
pushing me,†Tsarukyan added. “They know me because of myself. UFC
hasn't really put the work in to make me a star yet. When they
start working on me and start promoting me, then I'll be a UFC
star… When I become a champion, the promotion will be on a whole
different level from the UFC themselves.â€

Gillian
Robertson has addressed her recent defeat and comments from
longtime coach and mentor, Din
Thomas.

Robertson suffered a unanimous decision loss to
Ultimate Fighting Championship strawweight queen Mackenzie
Dern in her failed title bid at UFC
330 in Philadelphia.

Thomas later announced on the UFC 330 post-fight show that he's
stepping away from cornering fighters, saying he had taken
Robertson as far as he believes she can go. The timing of the
announcement subsequently drew criticism from both fans and
fighters. Robertson has now finally weighed in on the same.

Gillian Robertson says Din Thomas' comments made her question
his apology

Robertson, giving a statement to Ariel Helwani, says she had no
indication before the post-show broadcast that Thomas planned to
make the announcement.

“Prior to the broadcast, I didn't see any sign of what was to be
said,†Robertson said. “After the broadcast, he had said, ‘I will
address this in the morning,' followed by, ‘Going live on air in 15
minutes.'â€

Thomas later contacted her privately, but she has not responded to
his apology because of comments he made towards the rest of her
team.

“He did reach out to me privately at 5 p.m. and then sent a voice
message apologizing around 7:30 p.m., to which I have not responded
due to comments he has made since the broadcast privately to my
team that lead me to believe there is not much weight in the
apology.â€

She specifically cited the following comment from Thomas:

“Me doing that publicly was more so for TV purposes and
ratings.â€

The Canadian then discussed her future, adding that she'll soon
return to the gym and resume her quest for UFC gold.

“As for now, I regroup, take some time to heal, and I will be back
in the gym as soon as possible on the same mission,” Robertson
added.

I reached out to Gillian
Robertson following Din Thomas'
comments and subsequent apology to get her thoughts on the
situation. Here’s what she had to say:

“Prior to [Saturday’s broadcast], I didn’t see any sign of what was
to be said.

After the broadcast, he had said, ‘I will… pic.twitter.com/NnoonGmkGQ

— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani)
August 18, 2026

At Contender Series last night, Dana White dropped this little nugget:

“This thing started July 17, 2017. From that date to today, the fighters who have made it into the UFC from Contender Series have made a $225.3 million. Talk about an opportunity.”

Yes, let’s talk about that opportunity.

First off, that’s 9 years. So, doing some quick math and rounding, that $25 million per year.

Now, the show has officially awarded 333 contracts, though White later noted that 420 fighters have competed in the UFC from Contender series.

So, take that $225M and split it up by 420, and we’re talking ~$535,000 per fighter. Of course, that’s over 9 years, and not all fighters make the same. Sean O’Malley, for instance, has probably cleared several million of that on his own. I’d love to know what the actual number is per fighter, but that math is too hard for me.

Also for reference, Victor Wembanyama just signed a 5-year $252M contract.