Arman Tsarukyan trains with the only man to beat Islam Makhachev ahead of UFC 311 title fight, riling up MMA fans: "Secret weapon"

Islam Makhachev and Arman Tsarukyan are just weeks away from their long-awaited sequel clash with a familiar foe of the former getting in some training work with the latter. Makhachev vs. Tsarukyan II headlines UFC 311 on Jan. 18 with Arman Tsarukyan not only looking to become the promotion's lightweight champion but also avenge a prior defeat to the 155-pound titleholder.

To achieve this feat, Tsarukyan enlisted the services of the only man to have beaten Makhachev in professional mixed martial arts. Adriano Martins is the fighter who accomplished this and dispatched Makhachev with a first-round knockout during their UFC 192 matchup in October 2015.

Martins was recently seen in what looked to be a post-training photo with a sweat-drenched Tsarukyan in the lead-up to UFC 311. Several X users rushed to have their say on this intriguing training situation and an ample thread of tweets materialized thereafter.

@subhash5570 said:

"Secret weapon"

@MakrSupremacy stated:

"The disrespect"

@RRae96 quipped:

"Huge W for Arman for this"

Check out more fan comments below:

[Screenshots courtesy: @Home_of_Fight on X]

Check out the Arman Tsarukyan training photo alongside Adriano Martins below:

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Islam Makhachev is not intrigued by a possible Ilia Topuria bout

Islam Makhachev has his focus squarely locked in on his Arman Tsarukyan sequel in the new year but also took time to comment on a fellow champion within the promotion. UFC featherweight champion Ilia Topuria has indicated his interest in a public fashion that he also wants to have 155-pound gold at some point.

The 33-year-old reigning titleholder at lightweight responded to the kingpin of 145 pounds when Makhachev plainly stated he's tired of giving small guys a chance. This refers to the pair of massive fights that Islam Makhachev had against then-featherweight titleholder Alexander Volkanovski that saw the former earn back-to-back victories in the clash of highly ranked pound-for-pound combatants.

The Russian native also stated that he wants to go on his own path for a second belt and is less inclined to provide that chance for a champion who is coming up in weight. The path to this is unclear considering not just this Tsarukyan fight but Makhachev's history as a training partner with the current UFC welterweight champion Belal Muhammad.

While the timeline for becoming a double champ remains somewhat unclear, Makhachev has the chance to break the all-time lightweight title defense record in the UFC with four consecutive defenses. The lightweight king has previously defended the gold in those aforementioned Volkanovski outings and most recently did so against Dustin Poirier at UFC 302 in June.