Tsarukyan Confident Ahead of UFC 331 Co-Main Event

Arman Tsarukyan expressed supreme confidence in his abilities ahead of his UFC 331 co-main event against Mauricio Ruffy, declaring he is better than his opponent "everywhere" as the fighters prepared for their five-round lightweight clash in Los Angeles. Tsarukyan, who was returning to the Octagon after a nine-month layoff, told media outlets that Ruffy's training with Alexander Volkanovski and Israel Adesanya would not make a difference. "You cannot compare Adesanya with me, and you cannot compare Volkanovski with me. It's completely different fighters," Tsarukyan said. He added that with his wrestling and striking, he can outstrike Ruffy. The Armenian fighter also revealed that he initially wanted to be an NHL hockey player before pursuing mixed martial arts. "My dream was to go to the U.S. and play in the NHL," Tsarukyan said at a pre-fight news conference. He mentioned his admiration for hockey player Alexander Ovechkin. Tsarukyan received custom fight shorts for UFC 331, featuring a black design with a Russian bear, Armenian mountains and flag, and a Batman logo, paying homage to his heritage and his new nickname. He explained the design in a video shared by the UFC.