“Remember Khabib being in the same situation” – MMA coach gets honest about why Arman Tsarukyan should get next title shot against Islam Makhachev 

Islam Makhachev's head coach Javier Mendez recently empathized with Arman Tsarukyan, who couldn't fight for the lightweight title at UFC 311 due to an injury. With Ilia Topuria vacating the featherweight title to move up to lightweight, Tsarukyan has fallen further down the pecking order.

In a recent interview with Submission Radio, the head coach at American Kickboxing Academy found Tsarukyan's situation to be that of his retired prized pupil, Khabib Nurmagomedov. Even though he believes the Armenian deserved the next shot at the title, Mendez admitted he understood the UFC's business model.

The 54-year-old pointed out that the UFC prioritizes financially lucrative fights, as any fight promotion should. He said:

"For me, I would want Arman to get his just due, you know, his shot, because he worked very hard for it. I know that's not the way it works, but I just remember Khabib being in the same situation as him. Unfortunately for Khabib, when he got injured, he had to go back to the drawing board too. So, you know, I feel for Arman because, you know, he was deserving of that opportunity, and unfortunately, it didn't work out for him."

He added:

"So, you known I would like to hope that but it's just entertainment. The UFC is going to go where they can make the most money, and like any promotion. If I ran a promotion and it was not about anything but making the most money, I would do the same thing the UFC is doing. They are doing great marketing, and they’re making the right decisions to make most money."

Check out Islam Makhachev's head coach Javier Mendez's comments below (8:38):

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Islam Makhachev's coach draws distinction between UFC and other major sports

In the interview with Submission Radio, Islam Makhachev's head coach Javier Mendez drew a distinct difference between the UFC and other major sports leagues where merit matters. However, he also mentioned they would prioritize principle over profit on rare occasions.

The Mexican-American pointed out that the UFC is neither the NBA nor football and the sport along with professional boxing, can't adhere to the merit structure. Makhachev's coach believes fan interest plays a huge part in the promotion's decision.

Islam Makhachev's coach said:

"It's a promotion and entertainment business, so they need to make the most money. It’s not the NBA or college basketball or football, where number one always has to go against number two, or where the top two seeds fight for the championship. It's never going to be that way with boxing or MMA. So, you know, we can’t bitch about it." [9:29 onwards in the aforementioned video]

He added:

The majority of the fans are gonna wanna see this types of fights, and the UFC is going to give fan what they are looking for. That’s why they do their research and make sure this is the fight that’s most appealing. And then pnce in a while, I’m sure they gonna stick to their morals and go, 'Okay, this is the fight we want because we want it.' So I’m sure that happens too. I don’t think all the times it's all based on what makes the most money."

In his last fight, Islam Makhachev defeated Renato Moicano at UFC 311. As per Ariel Helwani, the promotion is looking to book Makhachev vs. Ilia Topuria for the International Fight Week.