Tsarukyan explains why he gave up the idea of competing at the Olympic Games

Alexandr Ormanji March 31, 2026, 9:38 a.m.

UFC lightweight contender Arman Tsarukyan explained why he abandoned the idea of competing in a freestyle wrestling tournament at the Olympic Games.

"It takes time, you know... If I were the UFC champion, then I could think about it, but... right now, no. There’s no money there. Do it for the country? Yeah, I could probably win a medal. But those guys have been training only wrestling for 25 years. It would be hard to compete with them. That’s a different level," Tsarukyan said on The Ariel Helwani Show podcast.

Watch this story: Arman Tsarukyan Eyes Backup Role for Ilia Topuria vs. Justin Gaethje at UFC 3XX

Israel Adesanya vs. Joe Pyfer at UFC Fight Night 271: Seattle Card Ends in Another Brutal Setback for Former Champ

UFC Fight Night 271 took place Saturday night, March 29, in Seattle, Washington, with a ...

Israel Adesanya vs. Joe Pyfer Set for UFC Fight Night 271: A High-Stakes Seattle Main Event With Middleweight Implications

UFC Fight Night 271 goes down overnight on March 29 in Seattle, with Israel Adesanya ...

Yaroslav Amosov vs. Joel Alvarez Set for UFC 328: Ex-Bellator Champ Gets a Fast Track Test

Yaroslav Amosov’s second UFC appearance is already on the books, as the 32-year-old Ukrainian welterweight ...

Conor McGregor vs. Max Holloway Eyed for UFC 330: A Long-Delayed Rematch Could Shape Two Divisions

Conor McGregor’s expected UFC return may come against Max Holloway, with veteran MMA reporter Ariel ...

Movsar Evloev vs. Lerone Murphy Headlines UFC Fight Night 255: What the London Main Event Means at Featherweight

UFC Fight Night 255 wrapped up Saturday night in London, England, with Movsar Evloev and ...

Movsar Evloev vs. Lerone Murphy Set for UFC Fight Night 270: Undefeated Featherweights Collide in a Major London Test

UFC Fight Night 270 lands in London on March 21, headlined by Movsar Evloev vs. ...

Comments

var _paq = window._paq = window._paq || []; _paq.push(['trackPageView']); _paq.push(['enableLinkTracking']); (function() { var u="//mm.magnet.kiev.ua/"; _paq.push(['setTrackerUrl', u+'matomo.php']); _paq.push(['setSiteId', '1']); var d=document, g=d.createElement('script'), s=d.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; g.async=true; g.src=u+'matomo.js'; s.parentNode.insertBefore(g,s); })();

window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments);} gtag('js', new Date()); gtag('config', 'G-DPZJLB78XY');