Arman Tsarukyan rear-naked choke’d an alligator during recent south Florida fishing trip, plans to turn it into boots

UFC lightweight contender Arman Tsarukyan tested his grappling skills on an alligator during a recent fishing trip to the Everglades.

Tsarukyan sat cageside as UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev defeated Dustin Poirier in the UFC 302 main event on Saturday. After Makhachev’s submission victory, a rematch between Tsarukyan and Makhachev is the likely next lightweight title fight booking.

As Tsarukyan, who has won four fights in a row, prepares for his likely next fight, he’s training hard in the gym and enjoying Florida life out of it. Tsarukyan, an avid outdoorsman stemming from his time growing up in Armenia, experienced the Everglades during a May fishing trip.

Tsarukyan will need to have a wrestling-heavy training camp in preparation for Makhachev. As an alligator approached his boat last month in the Everglades, Tsarukyan used it as an opportunity to test his submission grappling.

Arman Tsarukyan will wear Alligator boots to Islam Makhachev fight

During a recent appearance on The MMA Hour, Tsarukyan gave a chilling account of his May fishing trip.

“I choked him out,” Tsarukyan said. “I caught him, pulled him out from [the river], choked him, and put it on my back…I got a license to kill the alligator. We put a fishing hook out on the river, and me and my friend had to pull him in with one [rod]…

“He was 50, 70 pounds. Caught him without meat or anything…other animals it’s sad, but alligators, it’s ok. They eat people. Rear-naked choke from back-mount.”

Tsarukyan was then asked what he planned to do with the alligator after the incident.

“Boots,” Tsarukyan replied. “I’m going to wear them to my title fight. Alligator boots.”

While there’s no public footage of Tsarukyan submitting the alligator, as of this writing, he posted on his Instagram a photo of him carrying it on his back away from the river. You can check that out below.

 

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A post shared by Arman Tsarukyan (@arm_011)

Tsarukyan isn’t the only UFC star to use his skillset outside of the cage. Kevin Holland, who defeated Michał Oleksiejczuk at UFC 302, has stopped numerous crimes in his native Houston, including a shooting.

Tsarukyan’s ferociousness was on full display in one of the most dangerous places in the world, and he’ll soon look to replicate it inside of the Octagon.