However, Hooker doesn’t think Topuria changes weight classes. He compared his approach to [autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag]’s.
“Classic sh*t,” Hooker told Submission Radio. “It’s pretty evident that he’s just working off of McGregor’s playbook. Line 1 in McGregor’s playbook is to keep your name in the headlines. That’s all that I kind of see from it, is Topuria keeping his name in the headlines. The guy doesn’t fight that often. I think he just fights Volk sometime next year, March or April.”
After becoming the first to knock out Holloway this past October at UFC 308, Topuria welcomed a rematch with Volkanovski. Hooker ripped Topuria for contemplating a change of plans after agreeing to fight his City Kickboxing teammate.
“Don’t get in the f*cking cage with him and agree to fight him then, d*ckhead,” Hooker said. “You let him get in the cage, you had a faceoff with him, and you said you’d fight him, man to man? That’s that: You’ve already agreed to a fight, and how are you going to back out of it now?”
Hooker (24-12 MMA, 14-8 UFC) is back in the upper echelon of the UFC lightweight division after three-straight wins over Claudio Puelles, Jalin Turner, and most recently Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 305.
Dan Hooker believes Islam Makhachev and Khabib Nurmagomedov’s opponents are often intimidated before the fight starts.
[autotag]Dan Hooker[/autotag] believes [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag] and [autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag]’s opponents are often intimidated before the fight starts.
Hooker (24-12 MMA, 14-8 UFC) experienced it first hand when he faced current lightweight champion Makhachev (26-1 MMA, 15-1 UFC) at UFC 267 in October 2021. He was submitted in the first round.
“The myth of it is bigger than the actual task, and they kind of ride off the back of the myth of Khabib, and that’s bled into Makhachev, and you can see it,” Hooker told Submission Radio. “It definitely affected me. It’s bigger than the actual guy. If you just boil it down to the actual guy, it makes it quite a bit simpler.”
Makhachev is expected to make his next title defense in a rematch against Arman Tsarukyan, which is being discussed as the UFC 311 headliner Jan. 18 in Inglewood, Calif. In their first fight, which was Tsarukyan’s UFC debut, Makhachev outgrappled him in a back-and-forth battle.
Hooker predicts their rematch to have a more definitive ending.
“Islam (is) very defensively sound on the feet,” Hooker said. “And I feel like once he has more time to study and break down Arman’s counter-wrestling, I think it will be a more dominant win for Islam in the second fight.”
Dan Hooker isn’t a fan of Michael Chandler throwing his name into the hat for a BMF title fight.
[autotag]Dan Hooker[/autotag] isn’t a fan of [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag] throwing his name into the hat for a BMF title fight.
Chandler (23-9 MMA, 2-4 UFC) was initially gunning for a title fight with a win over Charles Oliveira Saturday at UFC 309, but after suffering a unanimous decision loss to the Brazilian at Madison Square Garden, the 38-year-old turned his attention to the BMF title, which Max Holloway currently holds.
“Hey, I had a bunch of callouts, I was supposed to show up tonight, do my job, and win the fight,” Chandler said post-fight at UFC 309. “Forget calling out Islam, Charles is doing that next. Maybe Max Holloway for the BMF belt.
“Or, Conor McGregor, if you can ever get your house back in order while us real professionals have been keeping the octagon warm, we’re wondering where you’ve been, Conor. Come back and beat me, if you can!”
Hooker (24-12 MMA, 14-8 UFC), who since losing to Chandler in January 2021 has won four of his past six, criticized Chandler’s callout, and thinks the fans should decide who gets to fight for the BMF title.
“I don’t see Chandler calling for the BMF,” Hooker told Submission Radio. “Why does everyone keep throwing their hands up for the BMF? It’s not up to us. It’s not our title. It’s the BMF. The BMF title is for the fans. It’s up to the fans. People need to stop calling out for the BMF title, brother. That’s the fans’ title – it’s their fun.”
[lawrence-related id=2787824,2787601,2786765]
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.
Michael Chandler doubts Conor McGregor and Dan Hooker will end up fighting each other.
[autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag] doubts [autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag] and [autotag]Dan Hooker[/autotag] will end up fighting.
Chandler (23-8 MMA, 2-3 UFC) was scheduled to welcome McGregor back to the octagon at UFC 303 in June, but the bout was scrapped after McGregor withdrew because of a broken pinky toe. Chandler decided to move on and is scheduled to rematch Charles Oliveira in the UFC 309 co-main event Nov. 16 in New York.
That leaves McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) without an opponent, but “The Notorious” recently declared that his return will now be against Dan Hooker (24-12 MMA, 14-8 UFC) in February after the pair verbally agreed to fight during the BKFC Marbella event this past Saturday.
Chandler, however, isn’t buying it.
“Conor’s a very flavor-of-the-week kind of guy,” Chandler said on “The Ariel Helwani Show.” “He just had a conversation with Dan Hooker. Everybody knows Dan Hooker’s an awesome dude. You can sit there and have a beer with him, a Forged Irish Stout, in the middle of a squared ring and be like, ‘Hey, man. I like you, you like me, we can make some magic, let’s fight each other.’
“I looked no further than that, honestly. Dan Hooker’s in the top five now. And if anything, it strengthens my case that I deserve to be in that top five, top six anyway because I have a win over him in my debut. So, I’m happy for Dan Hooker.”
Chandler still has plans of fighting McGregor and thinks the UFC prefers this matchup for McGregor’s comeback.
“I don’t think the UFC’s going to be very keen on McGregor vs. Hooker compared to McGregor vs. Chandler since we need to make this fight happen,” Chandler said. “I’m not really that worried about it.
“It’s been up in the air for the better part of two years. So, I’m not going to spend any time or energy or effort worrying about it. The good thing is I have a great job to do in front of me, and that’s Nov. 16 in Charles Olivera.”
Renato Moicano has no idea how Dan Hooker wound up in the UFC’s top five lightweight rankings.
[autotag]Renato Moicano[/autotag] has no idea how [autotag]Dan Hooker[/autotag] wound up in the UFC’s top five lightweight rankings.
Hooker (24-12 MMA, 14-8 UFC) earned that spot by edging out Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 305 in August. Moicano (20-5-1 MMA, 12-5 UFC), who battered Benoit Saint Denis en route to a doctor’s stoppage TKO in Round 2 of Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 243 headliner, sees Hooker as an easy path to the top five.
“I don’t know how he’s in the top five – that’s unbelievable,” Moicano said during the ESPN post-fight show. “It’s like to see a turtle in a tree. Have you seen a turtle in a tree? Somebody put him there. That’s the whole thing, you know? He didn’t climb the tree, but he’s on the tree. So if they want to give me an easy pass for the title shot, Dan Hooker is easy money.
“Imagine if I take him down, what I’m going to do to him. He has no ground game. Paddy Pimblett is another easy money, but I respect him a little bit more. You know why? Because he has a lot of followers. If you have followers, you have my respect. People want to see Paddy Pimblett, and I respect him.”
When asked what his strongest attribute is, Moicano said it’s his will to win.
“I cannot afford to lose,” Moicano said. “I’m telling everybody I have a house to pay. I just bought a new house. Dumb decision, but we don’t do decisions by head, we do by heart. I want to see my kid grow in a great backyard with a pool, and then I did that mistake. So until the house is paid, until all my debt is paid, I cannot afford to lose. Doesn’t matter if even Khabib (Nurmagomedov) comes back – I will beat Khabib.”
Dan Hooker thinks Conor McGregor has more to gain from fighting him than Michael Chandler.
[autotag]Dan Hooker[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag] has more to gain from fighting him than [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag].
McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) was slated to return against Chandler (23-8 MMA, 2-3 UFC), but after he withdrew from their UFC 303 booking in June, Chandler decided to move on. He runs things back with Charles Oliveira in the UFC 309 co-main event Nov. 16 in New York.
Chandler booking another fight left McGregor confused, as “The Notorious” still sees Chandler as a possibility for his return fight. However, Hooker (24-12 MMA, 14-8 UFC) thinks Chandler no longer make sense for McGregor. “The Hangman” entered the UFC’s top five lightweight rankings with a win over Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 305.
“He’s without a fight,” Hooker told Submission Radio on McGregor. “I know Conor’s hungry to fight, and fight someone that he can get something from and makes a lot of sense. That’s why I feel like Chandler kind of sitting there and waiting, and not staying active, you kind of lose. What does he get out of beating Chandler? He knocks out Michael Chandler in the first round, Conor McGregor doesn’t even get in that top five off of that performance.”
Hooker is confused to see Chandler run things back with Oliveira (34-10 MMA, 22-10 UFC). He understands Chandler’s motivation to avenge his 2021 title loss, but doesn’t see much incentive for Oliveira.
He teased big news coming up for himself, too.
“I get why they kind of put that fight together,” Hooker said. “That’s a big fight for the division. But I don’t know – it’s a weird fight. I was kind of trying to justify the fight, but no, it’s just a weird fight.Yeah, that might be just because I might have something up my sleeve, as well Might have a little something in the fire there, but it must be good if I’m saying nothing.
“I get why Chandler would want the fight. Obviously, if he gets by Oliveira, the UFC has kind of promised him a title shot, I’m sure of it. I don’t know too much about what Charles will get out of it. At our level, when you’re at the top five, top six in the division, it’s any man’s day. All of these fights are a bit of a coin flip.”
Fiziev (12-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC), who’s coming off back-to-back losses, made a pitch to fight Hooker. He hasn’t competed since tearing his ACL in his loss to Gamrot in September 2023.
“If me and Mr. Tattoo @danthehangman step into the octagon, I guarantee it’ll be an easy Fight of the Year contender .”
“I’m not excited for that fight,” Hooker said in an interview with ENGAGE. “The guy’s coming off two losses. He’s been sitting on the shelf. I called him out for the Perth card. I asked him if he wanted to fight on Perth, but he wasn’t ready.
“Now he’s ready, but that ship has long gone, mate. That fight does not excite me. Obviously, it excites him, but I have absolutely nothing to gain from that fight.”
Hooker is seeking big fights. With Arman Tsarukyan touted as No. 1 contender, only three names ranked above him remain: Charles Oliveira who’s booked to rematch Michael Chandler at UFC 309, Dustin Poirier, and Gaethje.
“I’ll be prepared to fight by the end of the year, so whatever comes,” Hooker said. “But obviously looking up. I’m on a three-fight win streak in the top five. The only other guy in the top five on a win streak is Arman, and he’s fighting for the world title, and that’s kind of set in stone.
“There’s the big three in front of me – obviously huge names in the sport, and they’ll be looking to take something off me. So my eyes are definitely looking forward. Oliveira, Gaethje and Poirier are all fighters that are huge names in the division, all ranked ahead of me and coming off of losses. So to get back on a win streak, they’ll obviously be looking to take the momentum that I’ve built.”
Now that he’s back in the top five of the UFC lightweight division, Dan Hooker will look to take a more cautious approach.
Now that he’s back in the top five, [autotag]Dan Hooker[/autotag] will look to take a more cautious approach.
Hooker (24-12 MMA, 14-8 UFC) re-entered the UFC’s top-five lightweight rankings after outlasting Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 305 earlier this month. Hooker recalls how the last time he was a highly ranked contender, he took a big risk that didn’t pay off.
“I kind of have learned that from my first rodeo, is to just kind of not do anything dumb this time around,” Hooker told ESPN Australia. “I mean, the last time I was No. 5, I agreed to fight Michael Chandler. Gave Michael Chandler a shot, it was his first fight in the UFC.
“I flew to Abu Dhabi, so other side of the world with absolutely no coaches, and went and fought him with a guy I’d been training for six months in my corner. It was not the smartest of decisions, so I guess this time around, I’m just not going to do anything dumb or sell my title shot again.”
“The Hangman” went from losing four of five to a three-fight winning streak.
“I appreciate my team and my coaches a lot more than I did before,” Hooker said. “I had the bad string during COVID. It was just obviously very difficult as an international fighter competing during COVID – especially in New Zealand where we had some of the harshest lockdowns in the world.
“You could just see in those fights, I was doing it without my coaches and without my team. I guess when I just came back, it’s a greater appreciation for the role that those guys play in my career.”
Paddy Pimblett sees Dan Hooker as a potential fight down the line.
[autotag]Paddy Pimblett[/autotag] sees [autotag]Dan Hooker[/autotag] as a potential fight down the line.
Hooker (24-12 MMA, 14-8 UFC) outlasted Mateusz Gamrot in a Fight of the Night effort at UFC 305 in Perth. With the win, “The Hangman” entered the UFC’s top five lightweight rankings, and revealed that the promotion is interested in booking him against former champion Charles Oliveira next.
During a watch-along on his YouTube channel, Pimblett (22-3 MMA, 6-0 UFC) was surprised to see Hooker be that big of an underdog.
“I agree with Gamrot being a favorite. I don’t know about a big favorite – Dan Hooker’s fought a much higher-caliber of fighter,” Pimblett said. “Even though he lost a few, he lost a few to some of the best fighters in the world. I could end up fighting one of these, couldn’t I?”
Right before the scorecards were read, Pimblett accurately predicted that Hooker would get his hand raised. Pimblett, who just entered the 155-pound rankings after quickly submitting King Green at UFC 304, sees Hooker as an exciting fight.
“Fight of the Night so far of what I’ve watched,” Pimblett said. “Let’s see the decision anyway. I reckon Hooker, lad, to be honest … Dan Hooker back in the top five: could be a nice fight for me in the future.”
After a brutal KO at the hands of Carlos Prates, Li Jingliang is out two months. But one UFC 305 suspension is potentially longer.
Everyone who fought this past Saturday at UFC 305 has been given medical suspensions after their bouts, though several were just for mandatory rest periods.
Of note, Li Jingliang, who suffered one of the most brutal knockouts in recent memory at the hand of Carlos Prates, will be out for 60 days. Plus, Casey O’Neill, who took a decision from Luana Santos on the prelims, has a 6-month suspension unless she gets clearance from a doctor to return sooner.
The event, which took place at RAC Arena in Perth, Australia, was headlined by a middleweight title bout between champion Dricus Du Plessis and former champ Israel Adesanya.
Thursday, MMA Junkie acquired a full list of medical suspensions from the commission at the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries of Western Australia, which oversaw the event. Check out that full list below. It’s important to note fighters can return prior to the conclusion of the full term if they are cleared by a doctor (unless noted otherwise).
Jesus Aguilar def. Stewart Nicoll
PERTH, AUSTRALIA – AUGUST 18: Stewart Nicoll of Australia is checked by medical staff after being defeated by Jesus Aguilar of Mexico during the Flyweight Bout against during UFC 305 at RAC Arena on August 18, 2024 in Perth, Australia. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)
[autotag]Jesus Aguilar[/autotag]: 15 days mandatory rest
[autotag]Stewart Nicoll[/autotag]: 30-day suspension
[autotag]Jack Jenkins[/autotag]: 15 days mandatory rest
[autotag]Herbert Burns[/autotag]: 30-day suspension
Casey O’Neill def. Luana Santos
PERTH, AUSTRALIA – AUGUST 18: Casey O’Neill of Australia celebrates after her Women’s Flyweight fight against Luana Santos of Brazil during UFC 305 at RAC Arena on August 18, 2024 in Perth, Australia. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)
[autotag]Casey O’Neill[/autotag]: 180-day suspension unless cleared by doctor
[autotag]Luana Santos[/autotag]: 15 days mandatory rest
[autotag]Valter Walker[/autotag]: 15 days mandatory rest
[autotag]Junior Tafa[/autotag]: 15-day suspension
Carlos Prates def. Li Jingliang
China’s Li Jingliang (in red) is knocked out by Brazil’s Carlos Prates in their men’s welterweight division event of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) 305 at the Perth Arena in Perth on August 18, 2024. (Photo by COLIN MURTY / AFP) / — IMAGE RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE – STRICTLY NO COMMERCIAL USE — (Photo by COLIN MURTY/AFP via Getty Images)
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