Arman Tsarukyan is ready to bully Islam Makhachev around in the cage.

That was just too easy to open with on my part. We're still waiting for Tsarukyan to reduce his nine-month suspension from the NSAC with a requested anti-bullying PSA after his UFC 300 fan altercation. After that, nothing should stop him from receiving the rematch of his UFC debut against the now-champion.

Well, I take that back. Makhachev has a torn ligament in his hand after beating Dustin Poirier into almost-retirement at UFC 302 in June. Therefore, the champ's wishful thought of returning in Madison Square Garden this November isn't looking likely. Regardless, Tsarukyan plans to only fight for gold in his next fight, whether with or without Makhachev.

“I am the No. 1 contender,” Tsarukyan told Artem Tarasov. “[Makhachev] says that I only talk, how can a person talk and be in the top one? It turns out I’m not just talking, I’m also doing and proving it with my actions.

“I became No. 1 and proved to the whole world that I am a contender for the title, and my next fight will be only for the belt. So it could be an interim title if he doesn’t have time to recover his hand. If he recovers his hand, it will be even better for me.”

Tsarukyan, 27, continued his winning ways with a fourth straight triumph (22-3) at UFC 300 this past April, defeating former champion Charles Oliveira via split decision. Since he joined the promotion in April 2019, Tsarukyan has only tasted defeat twice with the first coming in his aforementioned debut against Makhachev via unanimous decision.

The American Top Team (ATT) product appears to be in luck when it comes to the security of his title shot thanks to Makhachev’s injury and Belal Muhammad's recent welterweight title coronation. Due to the relationship between the two champions, the idea of a champion vs. champion bout has been nixed by each. That leaves the lightweight and pound-for-pound great Makhachev to try and break the divisional title defense record, which he tied at three with his fifth-round d'arce choke of Poirier.

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TOP STORIES

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Debate. Olympic champ David Taylor doesn’t buy that banned Russian wrestlers taint wins at 2024 Games

Winners. Olympics 2024 Wrestling Results: Freestyle and Greco-Roman

Callout. Turki Alalshikh blasts Canelo Alvarez for only taking ‘easy fights’, Canelo responds

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LET’S WATCH

The MMA Hour.

Unexpected UFC finishes.

Full fights (and a match).

McGregor v McGregor.

Usman’s return.

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LISTEN UP

No Bets Barred. MMA Fighting’s Jed Meshew and Conner Burks discuss Marcin Tybura and Serghei Spivac Rematch at UFC Vegas 95, plus Olympics wagers.

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MORNING MUSIC

Go to Twitter, use the #MorningReport hashtag, or find one of my tweets with it, and drop me a jam you’re currently really into. I’ll pick the best one alongside my daily choice and give you a shoutout! You can also share in the comments below — those are just harder to sift through sometimes!

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SOCIAL SCROLL DOWN

Love these.

Gold St-Pierre.

Smashing.

Caption.

Shocker.

Hype.

The void.

Posters.

Champ things.

Born for it.

Awareness.

It would appear so.

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FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS

Chris Gutierrez (20-5-2) vs. Quang Le (8-0); UFC Vegas 95, Aug. 10

Cris Cyborg (27-2, 1 NC) vs. Larissa Pacheco (23-4); PFL Super Fight PPV, Oct. 19

Francis Ngannou (17-3) vs. Renan Ferreira (13-3); PFL Super Fight PPV, Oct. 19

Jessica Penne (14-7) vs. Elise Reed (7-4); UFC Vegas 99, Oct. 19

Abus Magomedov (26-6-1) vs. Brunno Ferreira (12-1); UFC 308, Oct. 26

Chris Weidman (16-7) vs. Eryk Anders (16-8); UFC 309, Nov. 16

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FINAL THOUGHTS

Very happy to finally see Cyborg vs. Pacheco made official. That card should be pretty awesome if it stays together unlike the one in February.

Thanks for reading!

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EXIT POLL

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If you find something you’d like to see in the Morning Report, hit up @DrakeRiggs_ on Twitter and let him know about it. Also, follow MMAFighting on Instagram and like us on Facebook.