UFC lightweight ranking number four Arman Tsarukyan explained why he raises the Armenian flag in the octagon, despite the fact that he considers himself a Russian fighter.
“I love Russia, and I like living there,” Tsarukyan told Ariel Helwani in an interview. “I was born in Georgia, came to Russia with my parents at the age of two and have lived there all my life.”
“As for the flag, I think the Armenian flag represents me best because I am one hundred percent Armenian. I tell everyone – I am a Russian fighter, but I represent Armenia”
“When I see the flags of Armenia and Russia around, it motivates me, and I know that nobody can beat me that night”
Last weekend at UFC on ESPN 52 in Austin, Arman Tsarukyan knocked out American Benil Dariush in the 64th second of the fight before challenging his compatriot Islam Makhachev, the current division champion and the best fighter in the organization regardless of weight class.
Source: https://fighttime.ru/news/item/33328-arman-tsarukyan-ob-yasnilsya-po-povodu-rossijskogo-flaga.html?rand=19907
