Apparently the world almost got to see a grappling match between Hollywood star Tom Hardy and top UFC lightweight Arman Tsarukyan. The CEO of Hype Fighting, Armand Martirosian, revealed that he actually offered the match to Hardy back in October but Hardy wasn’t able to take it. Martirosian shared a screenshot of a brief conversation between him and Hardy where the actor’s response can be seen, and he explains that he’s busy filming a redacted project during the time of the match. Martirosian has left out his actual offer but according to Hardy’s response, it appears to have been a very generous one.
Hardy himself says that “it appears to be far more money than any professional BJJ fighter would usually earn”, before reassuring Martirosian that the money itself is not the issue and it’s solely down to having other commitments. Although the exact project that Hardy is working on isn’t revealed, it’s a pretty safe bet that he’s talking about the TV series ‘Mobland’. He’s the main character on the show and filming of the second season is currently underway, with Hardy clearly being on set when the director Guy Ritchie received the 3rd degree on his BJJ black belt in early December 2025.
It would have been a very unexpected matchup of course, and the first time that a major celebrity BJJ practitioner has competed in a professional match. Hardy is no stranger to competition though, as he’s actually won multiple local tournaments in the UK at blue belt. Obviously Tsarukyan has a huge advantage in experience though, and he is also right in the peak of his career as a combat sports athlete. The promotion ended up finding an alternative opponent for him for their December event, and he was able to put on a great performance against fellow UFC fighter Sharaputdin Magomedov instead.
