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This weekend, Beneil Dariush makes his long-awaited octagon return since a crushing loss to Charles Oliveira at UFC 289. He will take on surging high-potential lightweight Arman Tsarukyan at UFC on ESPN 52. While Arman Tsarukyan is Armenia's first crack at the MMA mountaintop, what is Beneil Dariush's nationality?
Born in Urmia, Iran, Dariush is an Iranian-born fighter, whose family moved to the United States when he was nine years old, making him an American citizen. He now resides in Yorba Linda, California, with his wife and children. While he is Iranian by birth, Dariush is not Persian like a large portion of Iran's population.
So, what is Beneil Dariush's ethnicity? As it turns out, he is Assyrian, a Semitic group that is almost exclusively Christian, compared to the majority Shia Muslim population in Iran. As a devout Christian himself, Dariush frequently punctuates his post-fight interviews by touching on his faith and calling on others to do the same.
Regarding his fight tomorrow, he will be faced with questions, as will Arman Tsarukyan as well. Ever since the Iranian-American's first-round TKO loss to Charles Oliveira, some fans have wondered whether he, now 34 years old, has unknowingly entered the early stages of a career downswing.
However, talk of a potential decline may very well be premature, as Dariush was previously on an eight-fight win streak. Meanwhile, Tsarukyan has long been regarded as a future title challenger, and a bout with Dariush represents the most difficult litmus test of his career since his bout with Islam Makhachev years ago.
Beneil Dariush's biggest win
While Beneil Dariush was once on an eight-fight win streak, he didn't face enough top-level names to have many recognizable wins. Despite attempting to secure a bout with former interim lightweight champion Dustin Poirier, the fight never came to fruition due to a lack of interest on 'The Diamond's' part.
Thus, for the most part, Dariush was forced to face rising contenders. He did, however, manage to secure a bout with another former interim lightweight champion, Tony Ferguson, who he dominated en route to a unanimous decision win at UFC 262. He remains Dariush's biggest win.
