goodbye! Dana White Boots Arman Tsarukyan ‘Back to the Drawing Board’ After Saving at UFC 311

On By Littum

Arman Tsarukyans the weekend just got a lot worse.

The 28-year-old Armenian was scheduled to compete in the main event of UFC 311 tonight (Sat. Jan. 18, 2025), but during the early morning weigh-ins yesterday, Tsarukyan was a no-show due to a lingering back injury, and he was pulled of the match.

After Islam Makhachev ran through Renato Moicano in one round (see highlights) everyone thought that Tsarukyan would immediately be booked for the lightweight title again, but that doesn’t happen.

UFC CEO Dana White revealed during the UFC 311 post-fight press conference ( watch here ) that Tsarulyan will be placed at the back of the lineup.

“No,” White told the media when asked if Tsarukyan would get the next title shot. “He’s going back to the drawing board. I never want anybody to fight hurt, but we’ve been in these positions before. We went down there with a doctor, went down there with Heather from the UFC PI — who’s the best in the world.”

“You miss opportunities sometimes and he did,” White concluded. “We’ll see how things develop for him next year.”

When a reporter asked White if he thought Tsarukyan could compete, White said, “I have no idea. I don’t know. Only he knows.”

It is unknown at this time the extent of “Akhalkalaket’s” back injury, although his trainer said he could not sit up, but it did not stop well. Michael Chandler from taking a shot after the UFC 311 main event.

“I flew to Sioux Falls, SD 96 hours before a fight to get 12 injections in my spine then flew to the fight site. Still showed up. Still made weight. Still fought. That’s what real fighters do,” Chandler wrote.

Tsarukyan (22-3) is riding a four-game winning streak and is coming off a big win over Charles Oliveirathat can spring from him.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 311: “Makhachev vs. Moicano” news and notes, be sure to grab our extensive event archive to the right here. For complete UFC 311 results, highlights and live play-by-play, click HERE.