Beneil Dariush was originally set to clash against Renato Moicano at UFC 311. However, the fight was called off when Arman Tsarukyan pulled out of his bout with Islam Makhachev. Moicano was then called up to face the lightweight champion in his place. Dariush gracefully accepted his fate as the fight was canceled. However, it appears that ‘Benny’ has a challenge lined up for him in the shape of Rafael Fiziev.

Waiting to make his comeback to the Octagon, Fiziev has been inactive since he tore his ACL in a second-round TKO loss to Mateusz Gamrot in the UFC Fight Night 228 headliner in September 2023. However, it appears that the wait time is finally over. ‘Ataman’ has come forward to challenge Dariush to a fight.

The 12-3 fighter took to his handle to call out the Irani fighter, “Unfortunate about your fight cancellation, @beneildariush. I’m also still without a fight. When will you be ready to go? It’d be great to share the octagon with you.”

The 13th-ranked fighter taking on the 7th-ranked fighter could work if the UFC wants it, but Dana White might have different plans for the Kazakhstani fighter.

Talking about his injury last year, ‘Ataman’ emphasized that he is on the path of complete recovery as he has prioritized rest and recovery, “Oh, recovery [has been] going good.  Straight away after the fight I [had] the surgery. So now it’s almost one year, and my knee is good. It’s going good, the second time is like a little bit [slower] than the first time.”

Rafael Fiziev has been calling for a fight for months, emphasizing that he would be ready to return as early as last September. However, the UFC hesitated. In addition to calling out Dariush, ‘Ataman’ has also challenged his former opponent, Gamrot, to a rematch to avenge his loss, “I want a rematch because I still want to feel this pressure, like wrestling pressure and grappling pressure,” said Fiziev in a conversation with the media. ‘Ataman’ is clear in his approach but what about Dariush? What does the 7th-ranked fighter want from the UFC? Let us find out.

Beneil Dariush reveals 3-fight demand for Dana White

After the UFC 311 fall-off, Beneil Dariush gracefully accepted the UFC’s terms and pulled out of the clash, but that doesn’t mean he will go down without a fight. While having a conversation with ‘Inside Fighting,’ the Iranian-American fighter claimed that he might have conceded to the UFC’s whim’s at the moment but emphasized that he had laid out three opponents for himself this year.

“I’d like to fight somebody ahead of me for once. You know, and ideally, I would like to fight—what is it called?—Dustin Poirier, Max Holloway, or, or, um, what’s his name? Chandler. You know, I obviously don’t know how Chandler is ahead of me in the rankings, but I think those are the fights that make sense.” Of those, Dariush considers Dustin Poirier his “most ideal” opponent,” said Beneil Dariush.

Well, despite being with the UFC for over a decade now, ‘Benny’ has never attained the chance to clash against Dustin Poirier. Moreover, if this fight takes place, then it would be a good retirement fight for ‘Diamond’ as well. Regardless, the decision lies in the hands of the fighters and the UFC head honcho, Dana White. What’s your take on the hubbub? State your thoughts in the comments below.