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Arman Tsarukyan recently penned an emotional message to fans after he was forced to withdraw from his lightweight title fight against Islam Makhachev in the main event of UFC 311. The No.1-ranked lightweight had climbed the rankings and worked hard to earn a rematch against Makhachev, but will now regroup and overcome his latest setback.
The Armenian was forced to withdraw after suffering a back injury and notified UFC CEO Dana White that he was unable to compete tomorrow night. As a result, Renato Moicano, who was scheduled to fight Beneil Dariush, was named as Tsarukyan's replacement and will now challenge Makhachev instead.
The 28-year-old posted a statement to his Instagram account and opened up about his decision to withdraw from his lightweight title fight. Tsarukyan expressed his gratitude toward the UFC and fans for their support.
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"I regret to inform everyone that the news is that I had to pull out of UFC 311 with a back injury is true. This was the hardest decision I've ever had to make in my fighting career. I would like to thank the UFC for understanding and I look forward to competing for my first UFC championship in the future. Thank you all for your support [heart emoji]"
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Check out Arman Tsarukyan's Instagram post below:
Renato Moicano issues statement after replacing Arman Tsarukyan
In addition to Arman Tsarukyan releasing a statement following his withdrawal from UFC 311, Renato Moicano issued a statement of his own directed toward Islam Makhachev.
After it was made official that he would be replacing Tsarukyan, the UFC posted a video to their X account of Moicano being confident enough to dethrone Makhachev:
"'Money' Moicano is coming for the belt. Be ready, Islam Makhachev. Tomorrow is money time. Man, I'm so happy that I got this opportunity. I have been working for this for a long time and I knew that it would happen...I'm ready and tomorrow I'm going to shock the world."
Check out Renato Moicano's statement after replacing Arman Tsarukyan below:
