UFC lightweight contender Arman Tsarukyan had malicious intent behind his viral mid-match fall with Urijah Faber at RAF 08.
Arman Tsarukyan continues to keep busy outside of the Octagon as he continues to wait for a UFC lightweight title shot. The top UFC lightweight contender recently squared off with UFC Hall of Famer Urijah Faber in the Real American Freestyle 08 main event, earning a dominant 13-1 victory.
A scary moment transpired when Tsarukyan attempted a single-leg takedown, which was well defended by Faber, before Tsarukyan and Faber fell off the mats. Luckily, Tsarukyan and Faber were uninjured as a result of the incident, and Faber even later joked that Tsarukyan helped fix his back issues when he fell into the crowd.
But Tsarukyan took the opposite approach in discussing the now-viral clip, and admits he had Faber’s pre-fight trash talk on his mind when it happened.
Arman Tsarukyan ‘wanted to hurt’ Urijah Faber in viral wrestling mat fall
In a recent interview on The Ariel Helwani Show, Tsarukyan was asked about the incident and admitted he had malicious intentions after their pre-fight trash talk.
Arman Tsarukyan just went FLYING off the mat into the crowd with Urijah Faber
Holy shit 😭😭😭 pic.twitter.com/7E0wj1thZb
— Happy Punch (@HappyPunch) April 19, 2026
“I forgot it was a mat, I thought we were still in the cage, and the fence was going to stop it. But I wanted to hurt him to be honest,” Tsarukyan said of Faber.
“He was talking too much. I sent him a message not to mess around with me. One of my fans wanted to punch him, and I stopped him…he was just talking too much, and I wish he didn’t.”
Tsarukyan was recently warned by UFC CEO Dana White to ‘not act like a maniac’ as the talented lightweight continues to make a strong case for a title shot. He hasn’t fought since submitting Dan Hooker at UFC Qatar, and this latest incident could potentially hinder his progress.
How does Arman Tsarukyan match up against either Ilia Topuria or Justin Gaethje? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!