Armen Petrosyan literally burst into the UFC. But the bright start did not guarantee anyone a long and successful career in the strongest organization of mixed martial arts.

So, with the fighter who had refused the flag, they did not stand on ceremony, having fired after the next defeat.

“From childhood, he dreamed of lifting the flag of Armenia”

Petrosyan was born and raised in Krasnoyarsk. He also took the first steps in martial arts. Before the transition to mixed martial arts, Armen built a successful career in Thai boxing. He was part of the Russian team, took part in the most prestigious tournaments. So, in 2015, a fighter, nicknamed Superman, brought to our country the silver of the World Cup. Also, Armen four times became the winner of the country’s championships.

Career in MMA also started cheerful. Already in the third battle, he became the Fight Night Global Champion in half -weight. True, the title was protected only once. In the fifth duel, Armen lost Khasan Yusefi as a knockout. Armen did not worry for a long time, and after four months he performed in the candidate series of Dane White. There he defeated a spectacular knockout, cutting his foot in the head of Bulgarian Kaloyan Koleva.

Armen Petrosyan / Photo: © JEFF BOTTARI / CONTRIBUTOR / UFC / Gettyimages.ru

It is well known that White loves fighters with bright shock equipment, to which, of course, Petrosyan belongs. After a spectacular knockout, the contract with the UFC was provided. True, in promotion, Armen decided not to perform under the flag of Russia.

– Since childhood, I dreamed of raising the flag of Armenia in the large arena, and my dream came true. Of course, everyone knows that I am a Russian fighter, because I was born and raised in Siberia. I fought for the national team for many years. We can say that I represent two countries, but here I was put before a choice. Just for myself and my parents, I wanted to do so, ”Petrosyan explained the decision to speak under another flag.

Dismissal after another failure

But under the Armenian tricolor, performances were not set, the fighter has played especially poorly recently. In 2024, Petrosyan held two fights to the UFC, in both losing to ahead of schedule. At first, Brazilian Rodolf Viyira defeated him with a painful reception, and then Sharabutdin Magomedov sent a knob with a backfist.

The duel was determining for the career of Petrosyan against another Brazilian Bruno Ferreira, held on the night of March 9 as part of the UFC 313 tournament. If you are not Tony Ferguson, it is extremely difficult to maintain a contract with the UFC after three early defeats. Armen did not escape this fate, losing in the second round by suffocating reception.

Armen Petrosyan and Bruno Ferreira / Photo: © Chris Unger / Contributor / UFC / Gettyimages.ru

The fight against the Brazilian was the last under the contract of Petrosyan with the American promotion. The leadership decided not to renew the agreement with a 34-year-old fighter on a series of three defeats. On March 14, it became known about the exclusion of an athlete from the UFC Roster.

Now Petrosyan’s career at a crossroads. The spectacular fighter with experience in UFC will probably want to see many promotions, including foreign ones. But while the athlete decided to take a pause to think over the options for continuing his career.

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