Surging lightweight contender, Dan Hooker has once more welcomed the chance to take on former two-weight champion, Conor McGregor in his eventual return to the UFC — claiming a rescheduled pairing with Michael Chandler now does nothing for the Dubliner.
Hooker, who returned to the lightweight top-5 rankings last month, managed to do so off the back of an impressive split decision win over Polish challenger, Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 304 in Australia.
As for McGregor, the former undisputed lightweight champion and featherweight gold holder saw a scheduled pairing with Chandler fall to the wayside back in June after fracturing a toe ahead of a welterweight clash in the main event of UFC 303.
And with the Missouri veteran since booking a return to the Octagon before the end of the year, McGregor has been left opponent-less with the former Bellator MMA star taking on former champion, Charles Oliveira in a five round rematch in the co-main event of UFC 309.
Dan Hooker offers to fight Conor McGregor in return to the UFC
Staking his claim for a title eliminator with Dublin counter-striker, McGregor next, Kiwi striker, Hooker claimed he would be the ideal opponent to face the ex-champion in his immediate return to competition.
“He’s (Conor McGregor) without a fight,” Dan Hooker told Submission Radio. “I know Conor’s hungry to fight, and fight someone that he can get something from and make a lot of sense. That’s why I feel like (Michael) Chandler kind of sitting there and waiting, he — and not staying active, you kind of loose. Like what does he get out of Chandler. He doesn’t even get in the — he knocks out Michael CHandler in the first round, Conor McGregor doesn’t even get in that top five off of that performance.
That’s a stipulation of the fight, we have to send each other drinking beers every single day of fight camp,” Dan Hooker joked. “We have to — we have to both agree to both agree. We maybe, we can get a breathalyzer, we can send each other a failed breathalyzer test every day of fight camp and we’ll get this thing squared away.”