The grudge match designed to settle the score between Arman Tsarukyan and Georgio Poullas has been scrapped, leaving fans with more questions than answers. After Tsarukyan and Poullas grabbed attention for their brawl at the RAF 6 event, both fighters agreed to a rematch. However, the bout fell apart not because of an injury or a contract dispute, but over a disagreement on which organization’s banner it would be fought under.

To settle the ongoing beef, the Armenian and the Ohio native agreed to face each other in a submission-only grappling match under the Hype FC banner in Brazil. But, according to Ariel Helwani, Poullas withdrew from the rematch, citing his preference that it should take place only under the RAF banner, a stance that the organization’s co-founder, Chad Bronstein, also confirmed.

“Georgio Poullas is withdrawing from next week’s submission match versus Arman Tsarukyan, per RAF co-founder Chad Bronstein,” the veteran journalist posted on X. “His preference is the rematch happens under the RAF banner.”

For context, Arman Tsarukyan ended up outperforming Georgio Poullas with a 5-3 decision in the RAF 6 co-main event, a result that quickly became a matter of dispute. Due to in-match fouls committed by the Ohio native, followed by a post-match brawl sparked by the Armenian’s punch, the situation spiraled into full-fledged chaos.

As a result, beyond the quality of the contest itself, ‘Ahalkalakets’s win was heavily questioned, and Georgio Poullas even went as far as declaring himself the champion after the fight. However, when the rematch was announced under Hype FC in Brazil, the amateur wrestler and social media personality appeared reluctant to clash with Arman Tsarukyan under submission-only rules, as he had already laid down conditions for a trilogy bout to take place under the RAF banner.

“But guess what? I’m supposed to go to Brazil to grapple him now,” Poullas told Ariel Helwani in an interview. “And you know why I’m doing that? So that he agrees to the [wrestling] rematch. “Good s—, bro. You can choke me out. You can squeeze me tight. I don’t care. The only reason I’m doing that is to get my get-back in this wrestling match,” he added.

Now, with the clash in Brazil unexpectedly shifted to the RAF, the chances are that Arman Tsarukyan could end up accepting another offer, looking forward to finally ending the grudge match. But ahead of the anticipated showdown, Georgio Poullas made some truly surprising remarks about Tsarukyan that could catch many people off guard.

Georgio Poullas calls Arman Tsarukyan a “cool guy”

Following the explosive melee at the freestyle wrestling event, it became almost certain that Arman Tsarukyan and Georgio Poullas would take their rivalry to a new level. Their post-bout verbal exchanges only strengthened that possibility once again.

However, as they now look ahead to a potential rematch, Poullas surprisingly had some positive things to say about the Armenian fighter, calling the entire scuffle merely a part of entertaining the crowd.

“I think Arman’s a cool guy, man,” Poullas told Uncrowned. “We were talking before the match, we made some video clips. I got no bad blood with the guy. I think that he’s a pretty alright guy. We talk our talk. He’s got his opinion, I got my opinion. But the clips are just social media, it’s for the fans.

“They want to see those interactions. We’re hyping the match. It’s all entertainment, it’s business, this is what we do. But yeah, me and Arman talked quite a few times before the match. He’s a cool guy. I’m a fan of him,” he added.

That is certainly a change of tone between two fighters who were on each other’s nerves just last week. While there appears to be some level of positivity, at least from the Ohio native’s side, Tsarukyan has not said anything publicly to echo those sentiments so far.

As a degree of respect seemingly emerges, trying to find its place amid the animosity, will the intensity be lower in a potential RAF rematch? Let us know in the comments section below.