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Paddy Pimblett criticizes Arman Tsarukyan’s lack of activity, tells him to stop ‘tickling people’ in RAF

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2 months ago

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Paddy Pimblett criticizes Arman Tsarukyan’s lack of activity, tells him to stop ‘tickling people’ in RAF

Paddy Pimblett can put himself directly back in title contention with a win over Benoit Saint Denis at UFC 329, especially after engaging in a five-round war with future lightweight champion Justin Gaethje back in January.

Despite the loss, Pimblett proved he could hang with the best of the best at 155 pounds and considering he survived 25 minutes with Gaethje while Ilia Topuria couldn't make it past the fourth round just adds another checkmark in his column. That said, Pimblett has openly stated that he knows it's probably going to take a win on Saturday and at least one more before the UFC would put him back in there against Gaethje again.

As far as other viable contenders for the belt, Pimblett scoffed at the suggestion that Arman Tsarukyan should be considered for that title shot after he's been out of action since October 2025 with no end in sight to his lengthy layoff.

“He needs to fight,†Pimblett said during UFC 329 media day on Wednesday. “He's had like one fight in three years and he beat an absolute bum. He needs to actually fight. Not go around in a singlet tickling people.â€

Of course, Pimblett referenced Tsarukyan's most recent win, which came against Dan Hooker in a lopsided performance for his fifth victory in a row overall. He also took aim at Tsarukyan's biggest activity happening in RAF rather than the UFC where he's become a mainstay in the freestyle wrestling promotion.

In fact, Tsarukyan is set to compete on Saturday at an RAF event in Georgia before returning to the United States for a showdown against Colby Covington one week later in Milwaukee. But none of those matches are happening in the UFC, which is Pimblett's biggest frustration with Tsarukyan whenever he's mentioned as a top contender at lightweight.

“[Fight] anyone. Just fight someone,†Pimblett said to Tsarukyan. “Get in the octagon and actually fight. Stop going around on your private jet eating food.â€

When it comes to his own fight, Pimblett is confident he'll dispatch Saint Denis on Saturday and take the necessary step forward to eventually clash with Gaethje again in the future.

Pimblett said he learned a valuable lesson from that first fight — ‘don't go to war with Justin Gaethje' — but he also knows there were mitigating factors that were working against him that night.

“I'm not going to use it as an excuse but the eye poke did change the fight in a big way,†Pimblett said. “The damage on my face was from an eye poke right hand.

“It wasn't just an eye poke. I felt his thumb touch my brain. So it was a bit heavy. I couldn't see for about two rounds after it.â€

Still, Pimblett praised Gaethje for the win as well as going out there and beating Topuria to claim the undisputed title. Now he's just hoping he'll get a second crack at Gaethje in the near future.

“Obviously with him winning and becoming undisputed champion, it looks good for me,†Pimblett said. “I said after he beat me, I said he was going to beat Ilia Topuria. I said it was fate that he beat me. It was his destiny to win the title at the White House. I was just in the way.â€

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MMA

Ex-UFC stars new career takes wild turn during traffic stop

Published

1 hour ago

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September 8, 2026

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Ex-UFC star's new career takes wild turn during traffic stop
Former
Ultimate Fighting Championship title challenger Marlon
Moraes now deals with real-world situations, as seen in a
recent South Florida traffic stop.

Viral footage circulating on social media shows Moraes, now working
as a police officer, dealing with a motorist who repeatedly
confronted and verbally challenged him. After several warnings to
back away, the man moved toward Moraes, who responded by taking him
to the ground.

Marlon Moraes hip tosses motorist while working as South
Florida police officer

The incident took place on March 27. Moraes joined the Davie Police
Department in Florida in June 2024 before taking a position with
the Coral Springs P.D. later that year.

In the viral footage, the situation escalates after the motorist
repeatedly insults Moraes and another officer. Moraes warns him
against moving closer before eventually using a hip toss to bring
him to the ground, where other officers move in to handcuff
him.

The incident adds another chapter to Moraes’ unusual post-fighting
career, which has seen him transition into law enforcement while
also returning to mixed martial arts competition. The Brazilian
exited the UFC in 2023 on a seven-fight losing streak. He defeated
Maximiliano
Perez by unanimous decision on Aug. 28, returning to
competition after three years to record his first victory since
2019.

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MMA

Shavkat Rakhmonov admits UFC return is far from guaranteed

Published

3 hours ago

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September 8, 2026

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Shavkat Rakhmonov admits UFC return is far from guaranteed
Shavkat
Rakhmonov isn’t ready to say that his
Ultimate Fighting Championship career is over, but the unbeaten
welterweight admits his return is far from guaranteed.

Rakhmonov has been sidelined since defeating Ian Garry in
December 2024. He entered that bout with a knee injury and it left
a long-lasting impact. In a new interview, he reflected on the
fight and where he stands in the 170-pound division.

Shavkat Rakhmonov details the knee injury that has kept him
sidelined since beating Ian Garry

“Nomad†admits that he should not have competed with his injury. He
also took a shot at Dagestani stars Khabib
Nurmagomedov and Islam
Makhachev, claiming they would never fight injured.

“Well, that's my problem; I couldn't fight,†Rakhmonov told Alf
Global. “If I had fought, I could've become champion, but that's
how it turned out. I was injured. What can I do? We are only human.
I actually shouldn't even have fought Ian Garry at
all. With injuries like that, I shouldn't have fought at all; I
just took a risk. That's the Kazakh way. Kazakhs are very daring.
They're not afraid. If it had been some other Dagestani fighter
like Khabib or Islam Makhachev, they definitely would've
refused.â€

Rakhmonov then delved deeper into how his injury worsened during
the Garry fight.

“I already had an injury going into the Ian Garry fight,†he added.
“I stepped in; I hadn't fought for a year; I wanted to fight. That
old injury was still bothering me a lot. My leg was swollen. And
when he was striking me, it was probably because I completely
lacked a ligament. I couldn't really feel that strike, in
general.â€

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MMA

Salahdine Parnasse calls out Max Holloway following showstopping UFC debut

Published

5 hours ago

on

September 8, 2026

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Salahdine Parnasse calls out Max Holloway following showstopping UFC debut
Salahdine
Parnasse made a statement in his
Ultimate Fighting Championship debut.

The former two-division
KSW champion stopped Dan Hooker
with a body kick and follow-up strikes in the first round of the

UFC Paris main event. Parnasse subsequently reiterated his
claim that he's already one of the best in the world.

Salahdine Parnasse targets Max Holloway after stopping Dan
Hooker at UFC Paris

Parnasse carried a five-fight win streak into his Octagon debut and
is high in confidence after a near-perfect introduction to UFC
fans. He was in good spirits after the fight, claiming that his
performance reflects just how dangerous he is to other UFC
lightweights.

“I threw the kick and then I threw a punch and to be honest with
you, I got to rewatch the fight, but I don't remember exactly
everything,†Parnasse said in a post-fight interview. “I showed
that I'm one of the best in the world, I showed that I'm dangerous
and I'm here.â€

The Frenchman also called for a matchup with former UFC champion
Max
Holloway, emphasizing that the request comes from admiration
rather than disrespect.

“Like I said, I want to fight Max Holloway; I know he's a legend,â€
Parnasse added. “This is not trash talking; this is just a dream
that I've had for a long time and out of respect, I really want to
face a legend like Max.â€

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