UFC 300 results: Arman Tsarukyan survives Charles Oliveira's submissions, wins split decision

Arman Tsarukyan had several close calls, but in the end got the job done.

The UFC lightweight contender defeated Charles Oliveira in a split decision after surviving a couple of close submission attempts from the Brazilian. The official scoring read 29-28, 29-28, and 28-29, with the two scorecards favoring Tsarukyan.

Tsarukyan (22-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) and Oliveira (34-10 MMA, 22-10 UFC) fought in a bout that was labeled a title eliminator by the promotion on the pay-per-view main card of UFC 300, which took place on Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Tsarukyan is now expected to face UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev.

Huge victory for @ArmanUFC!

He gets the split decision victory at #UFC300 pic.twitter.com/avzOhQpQ9v

— UFC (@ufc) April 14, 2024

In the first round, Oliveira nearly submitted Tsarukyan, as he snatched a guillotine that had Tsarukyan fighting for his life. Tsarukyan eventually gave up the position and went to his back to avoid getting submitted. From there, Oliveira landed big shots, but eventually got reversed. Tsarukyan maintained top position until the bell, with a brief pause after Oliveira an accidental, but illegal, kick from the bottom. It was a close round.

The second was also very competitive. Oliveira had his moments, but he was controlled for a good portion of the round. Oliveira, who’s a killer off his back, had a tough time setting up submissions and got mauled by ground-and-pound. Oliveira sustained a bad cut in the process. He did lock a triangle on Tsarukyan, but the bell stopped that attempt. It was a clear round for Tsarukyan.

The third round was a wild one. It was a continuation of the second, with Tsarukyan controlling and landing ground-and-pound on Oliveira. It looked like Tsarukyan was in control, but in the final minute, Oliveira reversed the position and locked a D’Arce choke. Oliveira came close to finishing it, but the bell went off before there was a finish.

Oliveira-Tsarukyan was stopped momentarily in the first round for a potential illegal up kick.

The fight would continue. #UFC300 pic.twitter.com/jUP7DMCdsE

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) April 14, 2024

Arman really survived this chokehold from Oliveira #UFC300 pic.twitter.com/tO1qktarQs

— ESPN (@espn) April 14, 2024

With this result, Tsarukyan is now on a four-fight winning streak. He had defeated Damir Ismagulov, Joaquim Silva and Beneil Dariush in the lead up to UFC 300.

On the other hand, Oliveira is now 1-1 since losing his title to Makhachev back October 2022. Prior to UFC 300, Oliveira had quickly stopped Dariush by first-round TKO. Oliveira was supposed to fight Makhachev in October, but he sustained a cut and was replaced by Alexander Volkanovski, who was knocked out by Makhachev.

Up-to-the-minute UFC 300 results include:

• Arman Tsarukyan def. Charles Oliveira via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Bo Nickal def. Cody Brundage submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 3:38
• Jiri Prochazka def. Aleksandar Rakic via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 3:17
• Aljamain Sterling def. Calvin Kattar via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Kayla Harrison def. Holly Holm via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 1:47
• Diego Lopes def. Sodiq Yusuff via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 1:29
• Renato Moicano def. Jalin Turner via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 4:11
• Jessica Andrade def. Marina Rodriguez via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Bobby Green def. Jim Miller via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-25, 29-26)
• Deiveson Figueiredo def. Cody Garbrandt via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 4:02

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 300.