Highlights! ‘Diamond’ Too Sharp For Hooker In FOTY Favorite

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC

Dustin Poirier returned to the UFC lightweight win column with a spectacular performance opposite Dan Hooker in their main event clash last night (Sat., June 27, 2020) at UFC on ESPN 12 live on ESPN/ESPN+ from inside UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The first round began with painful leg kicks to the calf by Hooker, who then landed two low blows. Both groin shots were shook off by “Diamond” and the veteran was eventually able to land a big right. Hooker hung in tough and landed good shots along the cage, including a knee up high.

Hooker was simply more active to begin the second but Poirier hit him with some bombs. “Diamond” then landed a big combination as Hooker started to brawl along the cage but “Hangman” wouldn’t back off. Both men scored as they threw punches galore and all chaos broke loose. Hooker really started to pull away towards the end of the frame as Poirier tired along the cage.

Poirier regained some momentum early in the third as he landed crisp punches down the pipe. Hooker kept plodding forward with combinations but the pressure of “Diamond” started to take its toll. “Hangman” was forced to take Poirier down but fell right into a tight guillotine choke. Hooker was able to survive it but couldn’t do much in top control as Poirier threatened with submission attempts and short punches off his back. Poirier even landed more shots when the action returned to the feet with 30 seconds left.

Hooker was able to score a brief takedown before Poirier got back to his feet to begin the fourth. Poirier returned the favor and landed his own takedown along the cage to get full mount. From there, “Diamond” would land hard punches and elbows as Hooker scrambled to survive. Poirier nearly locked in a few submissions but “Hangman” kept wiggling free.

Poirier had struck with 72-percent accuracy over the first four rounds and kept the same output in the fifth as he snapped Hooker’s head back with straight punches from range. Hooker eventually scored a takedown to break up the striking but “Hangman” wasn’t able to do much damage. Poirier would eventually work to back control and end the fight scoring punches. In the end, it was Poirier who escaped the main event with a unanimous decision win.

Check out the highlights below courtesy of UFC/ESPN:

For complete UFC on ESPN 12 results and coverage click here.