Arman Tsarukyan Is OUT Of This Weekend's UFC 311 Main Event, Renato Moicano Will Now Step In To Face Islam Makhachev

Never a dull moment in the world of MMA - Dana White just took to social media to confirm the rumors that Arman Tsarukyan is OUT of his scheduled UFC 311 main event against Islam Makhachev due to a back injury, and Renato Moicano will now step in. 

Moicano was originally slated to face Beneil Dariush earlier on the card, and as of this writing, there's no word yet on whether or not Dariush will get rebooked. Charles Oliveira is there as a backup, but I'm not sure he'd be open to that fight with no title involved....

Hopefully they find somebody - anybody - willing to get in there with Dariush. It'd be so shitty for him to complete a whole camp/weight cut and fly out to California only to get fight-cucked.

UPDATE: Unfortunately Dariush is off the card. Brutal for him.

On one hand, losing Arman Tsarukyan vs Islam Makhachev royally sucks. Tsarukyan probably has a better shot at defeating and dethroning Islam than anyone on the UFC roster right now, and we've been looking forward to this rematch for months. Their first fight was closer than anyone thought it would be, and even Coach Khabib knew his services would be needed this weekend.

On the other hand - what a god damn opportunity for "Money" Moicano, who has seen a meteoric rise in the last couple years. 

I think it all started back with his "Moicano wants MONEY!" promo which made him super funny and likable to a lot of fans, but his fights truly back up the hype, and he's on a four-fight win streak now….

Advertisement

Moicano's been on an absolute tear - it's undeniable. Does that mean he could just easily step up and beat Islam Makhachev on one day's notice? No, of course not. Makhachev is already lined at (-900) for a reason. He's the boogeyman with an even scarier boogeyman in his corner. Much, MUCH crazier things have happened, though….and if Moicano pulled off the near-impossible tomorrow, it would be an all time moment in the history of the sport in my eyes. 

I'm sure the promo that followed would be absolutely insane in the best way, too.

WAR MOICANO!!!