Aside from winning against Beneil Dariush in their main event bout, there’s another thing Arman Tsarukyan celebrated during the UFC Austin: the unconscious Bobby Green on the canvas.
It can be recalled that the report about the altercation of the two broke out prior to the event. In the clips shared online, Tsarukyan could be seen approaching Green. The Armenian-Russian fighter then confronted the American for “taking sh*t” about him. The scene started with verbal exchanges between the two fighters when Green shoved Tsarukyan, who quickly responded by grabbing Green by the neck. In the second video, the members of both teams clashed, with Green hitting Tsarukyan’s cornerman, Elvis Shakhbazyan.
It is unknown how the mayhem ended, but it is apparent that both sides still haven’t settled the issue. Tsarukyan made that clear after expressing his joy over the KO loss of Green to Jalin Turner, who only replaced Dan Hooker on short notice. “The Tarantula” quickly defeated the opponent after achieving a KO win at the 2:49 mark of Round 1. However, the success was controversial after referee Kerry Hatley failed to stop the fight on time properly.
TURNER FINISHES GREEN IN ROUND 1 👊 #UFCAUSTIN pic.twitter.com/YjeqI2GNSo
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) December 3, 2023
In the fight, Turner sent a solid overhand right to Green, which instantly caused the latter to visibly wobble. Turner took the chance to send more shots, which caused Green to drop and take cover. Turner continuously sent more punches to the opponent as Green remained conscious to cover his head. After several more punches, “King” passed out, but Turner managed to deliver more punches due to the late stoppage of Hatley.
Tsarukyan didn’t specifically point out the late stoppage as the main reason for his amusement over Green’s loss, but the fighter shared that seeing the American on the canvas thrilled him.
“I was super, super happy when his head was bouncing on the canvas,” said Arman during the event’s post-fight press conference.
In line with this, Tsarukyan explained the reason behind the brawl between his group and Green’s, noting the No. 13-ranked fighter made the first move that caused the fight.
“He was talking s*** about me,” Tsarukyan said. “I just came and asked him, ‘Bro, don’t talk s*** about me.’ Because where I’m from, you can’t just talk; you’ve got to answer for your words. So that’s why I just wanted to tell him don’t talk s*** about me because if you’re going to talk s***, we’ve got to meet and talk. So he pushed me, I pushed him, and that’s it. Done.”
Others might view the altercation as a way for the two fighters to push a bout between them in the octagon. However, it’s the opposite of what Tsarukyan wants, saying his focus is reaching the top by fighting Islam Makhachev or Justin Gaethje.
“Hopefully, I’m not going to see him again in my life,” Tsarukyan said about Green.
