He wrote on his twitter handle that “Arman, every time we see each other in person you freeze up like a scared duck with no idea what to do. You know I handle you however I want. I fight whoever the UFC chooses. And remember I slapped you and you just laughed, then you go around acting like a gangster. So keep going, you’re on the right path… just a few levels below me, kid.” He also shared a video of him holding Arman from the neck which did not apperead like a slap but rather a quick hold.
Arman, every time we see each other in person you freeze up like a scared duck with no idea what to do. You know I handle you however I want. I fight whoever the UFC chooses. And remember I slapped you and you just laughed, then you go around acting like a gangster. So keep… pic.twitter.com/1O9S3PKOU1
— Ilia Topuria (@Topuriailia) November 23, 2025
Featured Image: Ilia Topuria — via Wikimedia Commons (Public Domain).
The Backstage Encounter
The drama unfolded during Saturday’s UFC Fight Night event in Doha, Qatar, where Tsarukyan dominated Dan Hooker with a second-round arm-triangle submission, extending his win streak to six and solidifying his status as the division’s No. 1 contender. In his post-fight interview, Tsarukyan didn’t hold back, calling out Topuria directly: “Everybody’s running, especially Ilia… There’s just one No. 1 contender, it’s Arman Tsarukyan.” He even invited the champion onstage, only to be met with silence from Topuria, who was in attendance cornering his brother Aleksandre to a decision win earlier on the card.
Hours later, Topuria fired back on X (formerly Twitter) with a pointed message and attached video footage of their backstage run-in. “Arman, every time we see each other in person you freeze up like a scared duck with no idea what to do. You know I handle you however I want. I fight whoever the UFC chooses. And remember I slapped you and you just laughed, then you go around acting like a gangster. So keep going, you’re on the right path… just a few levels below me, kid.” The post, timestamped at 2:42 PM GMT, has racked up over 1.4 million views, spawning memes, debates, and calls for an immediate superfight.
How Topuria and Tsarukyan Went from Respect to “Scared Duck” in Six Months
For years Ilia Topuria and Arman Tsarukyan shared nothing but mutual respect two undefeated phenoms from the Caucasus region climbing the ranks in silence. They trained at the same camps in 2022, exchanged polite nods at European events, and even liked each other’s Instagram posts. Everything changed the night Topuria knocked out Islam Makhachev to claim the lightweight belt in early 2025. Tsarukyan, the perennial No. 1 contender who had twice been promised the next shot only for injuries and rematches to push him aside, began speaking out: “Everyone is ducking the real challenge.” Topuria fired back with the “scared duck” line in an interview, Tsarukyan responded with duck-meme edits and “El Pato” captions, and what started as light-hearted shade snowballed into genuine contempt culminating in last night’s backstage moment in Qatar where Topuria now claims he slapped a frozen Tsarukyan and walked away untouched.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe Lightweight Title Picture Just Got Personal
Ilia’s open hand on Arman’s neck, Arman’s awkward smile, no punches thrown has now split the MMA world into two camps: those who see a champion asserting dominance and those who see a contender refusing to be baited. Topuria frames it as proof he owns the mental edge; Tsarukyan calls it a desperate grab for relevance from a champion avoiding the hardest fight available. Whatever the truth, the lightweight division is no longer waiting on rankings or merit it’s waiting on pride. The UFC can book Gaethje, Pimblett, or anyone else, but until these two settle who really froze and who really laughed in that hallway, every press conference, every weigh-in, every card will feel like the undercard to the real main event that still hasn’t been signed.
