Dana White changes tune on Arman Tsarukyan after UFC 331 knockout: Hes made up for

Arman Tsarukyan is officially back in the good graces of UFC CEO Dana White after his massive knockout win at UFC 331 on Saturday.

Long ranked as one of the UFC's top lightweight contenders, Tsarukyan has been on a tear since his June 2022 decision loss to Mateusz Gamrot. With his latest highlight-reel, first-round elbow knockout of Mauricio Ruffy at UFC 331, Tsarukyan extended his UFC win streak to six and seemingly secured the division's next 155-pound title shot.

White essentially confirmed as much Saturday at UFC 331's post-fight press conference.

"I've been vocal that I wasn't crazy about some of the stuff that he's done," White said of Tsarukyan, "but when you f*** up, then you come back, and you do everything the right way — I mean, he couldn't have had a better comeback after the things that he had done that I wasn't thrilled about. Then to go in and perform the way that he performed tonight.

"I mean, at the end of that [first] round [against Ruffy], I was like, 'Oh s***, man, he's in for a rough night,' and then boom, the elbow. Incredible.

"If I don't like somebody, I'm pretty f***ing honest about it," White continued. "Arman made mistakes, and he's made up for them. Look at the position he's in right now after tonight. … You'd look like an idiot sitting up here saying that Arman has done anything wrong since the s*** that he did wrong. I mean, he's completely flipped everything, turned it around, and he could not be in a better position than he's in right now."

Tsarukyan, 29, infamously had his first-career UFC title fight lined up against Islam Makhachev in January 2025. It all fell apart, however, when a last-second injury forced Tsarukyan to withdraw the day before fight night, sending the UFC into a scramble. Since then, he's been stuck in purgatory with the promotion, having to fight his way back to a title shot.

Tsarukyan's status never wavered as the logical next choice to challenge for UFC lightweight gold, yet despite staying unbeaten since fumbling his title opportunity, he continued to be passed over for opportunities at the belt.

Now, Tsarukyan is confident he's finally set to get his shot and step into the Octagon against current champion Justin Gaethje.

It's just a matter of when.

"He already knows his message. He's fighting me next," Tsarukyan said of Gaethje at UFC 331's post-fight press conference. "I have no injuries. I need one-week vacation, then I can start training. Probably [a fight in the] middle of December would be great, end of December if there's a big card. I'll be ready. ... Whatever they tell me, I'll be there.

"Justin Gaethje never says my name, so he's scared. He wanted Ruffy to knock me out. It means he's trying to avoid me. He'll try to pull out Ilia Topuria or say he wants $15 million for Arman Tsarukyan, retire, play around some bulls*** game.

"He's either going to fight me, or he's gotta give that title for the young guys. We have a lot of contenders right now."