Dana White Offers Jake Paul’s MVP Fighter UFC Shot After Arman Tsarukyan Altercation at Rousey-Carano

Arman Tsarukyan may have unintentionally helped launch another fighter’s UFC career. Following the chaotic altercation between ‘Ahalkalakets’ and Namo Fazil on Netflix’s Rousey vs. Carano card, it has now been confirmed that the welterweight will be joining Dana White’s Contender Series.

That’s not all, as he is all set to compete in Week 1 of the new season on August 12, with an opponent still to be announced.

While ‘The Grandson of Saladin’ grabbed attention after submitting Jake Babian with a second-round anaconda choke during the final prelim fight at the Intuit Dome, it was his blood feud with Arman Tsarukyan that earned him the headlines.

In his post-fight interview, Namo Fazil publicly called out ‘Ahalkalakets,’ claiming the two “needed to talk.” But things finally boiled over when the 29-year-old walked past Arman Tsarukyan after the win.

Videos from the arena showed the two exchanging heated words before the UFC lightweight tried to jump the barrier and onto the fighter walkway. Security intervened instantly, but the situation continued backstage before the UFC star was escorted out of the building.

Seeing how the pot had been simmering for quite a while now, it was something that many fans saw coming. For the unaware, the bad blood came from the UFC lightweight contender’s comments on Kurdish people on a livestream where he referred to them as ‘gypsies,’ which Namo Fazil took personally.

“We train at the same gym,” he wrote in his Instagram story. “Call me a gyps little man, when you see me. @arm_011, come and call me a gyps when you see me, okay? Let me finish my fight (and) I will see you soon.”

Ironically, all the chaos may have ended up benefiting ‘Grandson of Saladin’ the most. His performance was already gaining attention after surviving a wild opening round and then securing the slick submission finish in Round 2. However, the altercation with ‘Ahalkalakets’ boosted his name even more into the MMA spotlight.

Given Dana White‘s already tense relationship with Arman Tsarukyan as a result of multiple controversies and outside-the-Octagon altercations like this one, the timing became even more interesting. But while it is a known fact that the head honcho wants the lightweight to stop with all the non-UFC violence, Jake Paul actually wanted Fazil and the Armenian to throw hands backstage.

Jake Paul favored his “fighter side” as Arman Tsarukyan almost started a brawl at MVP MMA

That tension was only heightened when Jake Paul explained how he reacted backstage during the chaos involving Arman Tsarukyan and Namo Fazil. While security and personnel tried to prevent the situation from escalating further, ‘The Problem Child’ admitted that the “fighter side” of him wanted to see the altercation continue.

In fact, according to the MVP co-founder, he was right there encouraging things to happen before being stopped by Nakisa Bidarian.

“I’m part Armenian. That’s my brother Arman out there,” he said at the post-event press conference. “I wish that scrap would’ve happened backstage. There are two sides to me. There is the business side, and then there is the fighter side.

“I was right there with Arman, trying to get the squabble to happen. And then Nakisa [Bidarian] stopped us, so I’ve gotta listen to big brother here. I was like, ‘Yo! Let’s run it. Let’s run it!’”

It was a surprising reaction given that usually promoters spend entire events desperately trying to prevent crowd violence or unsanctioned fights from breaking out near their fighters. However, MVP’s debut MMA event was built around spectacle as much as competition, and the chaos surrounding Arman Tsarukyan almost fit in perfectly with the night’s vibe.

At this point, it almost feels expected whenever ‘Ahalkalakets’ appears at a major MMA event. Whether he is swinging at fans, headbutting opponents, or nearly fighting people cageside, controversy seems to follow him everywhere.

The difference this time is that the incident may have boosted Namo Fazil’s career rather than hurting anyone involved. And now that the welterweight has joined Dana White’s Contender Series, the fighter who walked into the night looking for attention may have accidentally found the perfect way to get it.