"You will have Arman Tsarukyan making his way up too" - John McCarthy predicts who will be the top-5 UFC lightweights at the end of 2022
Arman Tsarukyan was a surprise addition as John McCarthy gave his verdict on who will be ranked inside the top five in the lightweight division at the end of 2022.
The 155-pound weight class is widely regarded as one of the most stacked divisions in the sport. Not only are the top 15 all killers, but there are also a handful of unranked stars who could all potentially compete for UFC gold in the future.
Discussing who he believes is going to make up the top five at lightweight during an episode of the Weighing In podcast, John McCarthy had this to say:
"Very simple, 2022 I'm gonna take Islam Makhachev will be at the number one, he will be the guy there. I'm going to go with Makhachev making the championship, Charles Oliveira will still be there, you will have Justin Gaethje in there. You will have Arman Tsarukyan making his way up to that top five, and I believe that Beneil Dariush will still be hovering right in that group."
Co-host Josh Thomson agreed with McCarthy's choices before giving his ideas for the division.
"Great minds think alike. I have Islam beating Oliveira and then I've got Oliveira being number two... Then I've got Dustin Poirier there if he stays in that weight class... Then I've got Justin Gaethje and then either Dariush and Tsarukyan, kind of got them intermixed in that position."
Arman Tsarukyan is on a tear through the lightweight division and finds himself ranked No.12. He has earned back-to-back performance bonuses with TKO wins over veteran Christos Giagos and fellow prospect Joel Alvarez.
Check out what John McCarthy and Josh Thomson had to say about the Armenian-Russian 155lber in the video below:
Who is Arman Tsarukyan?
A 25-year-old with a wealth of experience under his belt, Arman Tsarukyan is an emerging talent in the UFC. He has competed six times in the octagon since his arrival.
Currently 5-1 in the promotion, the American Top Team athlete's one loss came against his countryman Islam Makhachev in a brawl that was deemed Fight of the Night.
The well-rounded Georgian-born fighter aims to return to action sooner than expected and has set up base in America for the time being. A potential meeting with a top-10 opponent could skyrocket Tsarukyan up the rankings and closer to a UFC title shot.