Tag: Dan Hooker

Report | Dan Hooker out of UFC 285 Jalin Turner fight due to broken hand

Dan HookerUFC lightweight fan favorite, Dan Hooker, has been forced to pull out of his scheduled bout with surging prospect Jalin Turner due to a broken hand. After missing out on a spot on UFC 284 in Perth, Australia, Dan Hooker was set to take on No.10 ranked UFC lightweight Jalin Turner at UFC 285. The […]

Dan Hooker

UFC lightweight fan favorite, Dan Hooker, has been forced to pull out of his scheduled bout with surging prospect Jalin Turner due to a broken hand.

After missing out on a spot on UFC 284 in Perth, Australia, Dan Hooker was set to take on No.10 ranked UFC lightweight Jalin Turner at UFC 285. The bout announcement was greeted by huge fan excitement, as both men are known for putting on exciting matchups, often ending in explosive finishes.

The fight would have also given Hooker the chance to get revenge for his CKB teammate Brad Riddell, who suffered a 1st round submission loss to ‘The Tarantula’ in 2022.

Unofrtuently, it is not to be. ‘The Hangman’ has revealed he suffered a broken hand in training, announcing the news in typical Dan Hooker fashion:

The UFC are reportedly still looking to keep Turner on the card, although no opponent has been booked yet. However, No.14 ranked Drew Dober has already thrown his name in the hat, posting the following on Twitter:

“Hookers out. Renato is ghosting. Jalin Turner if you wanna stay in the game I’m down to scrap in April. Know you wouldn’t be on UFC 285 but your camp won’t go to waste.”

Alternatively, Dan Hooker has floated the idea of a Power Slap bout vs. Turner.

Who would you like to see Dan Hooker face when he returns from injury?

Dan Hooker Rejects Rafael Fiziev’s Callout: ‘That Ship Has Long Gone’

Dan Hooker recently made it clear that he has no intention of facing Rafael Fiziev. “The Hangman” is riding high after a closely contested split decision victory over the highly regarded Mateusz Gamrot on the main card of UFC 305 in Perth last month. This win has propelled Hooker back onto a three-fight win streak, […]

Continue Reading Dan Hooker Rejects Rafael Fiziev’s Callout: ‘That Ship Has Long Gone’ at MMA News.

Dan Hooker recently made it clear that he has no intention of facing Rafael Fiziev.

“The Hangman” is riding high after a closely contested split decision victory over the highly regarded Mateusz Gamrot on the main card of UFC 305 in Perth last month. This win has propelled Hooker back onto a three-fight win streak, into the top five, and also marked a notable revival of his career.

Hooker’s recent success has caught the attention of Fiziev, who, earlier this month, threw down the gauntlet on X by challenging the 34-year-old Kiwi. Fiziev even dubbed the potential matchup a “Fight of the Year contender.”

However, “Ataman’s” ambitions seem to have been tossed into a cold bag by Hooker, who has expressed that he’s no longer interested in the bout…

Hooker Puts Fiziev’s Form Behind Reluctance To Accept The Bout

During a recent interview with ENGAGE, Hooker addressed Fiziev’s fight callout, revealing that he’s not keen on facing the 31-year-old Azerbaijani due to his recent string of losses.

“The Hangman” further explained that he had initially called out “Ataman” for a bout at UFC 305 but Fiziev’s request for more time meant that the opportunity has now passed.

Hooker is now aiming to fight within the top five.

“I don’t want to fight him. I’m not excited for that fight,” Hooker said. “The guy’s coming off two losses. He’s 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 sailed, mate. That fight does not excite me;. Obviously, it excites him, but I have absolutely nothing to gain from that fight.”

After his victory at UFC 305, Hooker expressed a keen interest in facing either Charles Oliveira or Justin Gaethje next, aiming to take a decisive step closer to securing his first title shot.

Meanwhile, Fiziev has been on the sidelines for a year following a severe knee injury sustained during his bout against Gamrot in the headliner of a UFC Fight Night event in September 2023.

Prior to that setback, “Ataman” experienced a hard-fought majority decision loss to Gaethje at UFC 286 in March of that yae. This defeat ended his impressive five-fight win streak, a run that featured pivotal victories over Rafael dos Anjos, Kevin Lee, and Renato Moicano.

Continue Reading Dan Hooker Rejects Rafael Fiziev’s Callout: ‘That Ship Has Long Gone’ at MMA News.

Dan Hooker On Learning His Lessons From Initial Top Five Stint, Vows Not To ‘Sell His Title Shot Again’

It has been a long journey full of ups and downs for Dan Hooker to work his back into the top five of the lightweight division. After defeating Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 305, he’s riding a three-fight winning streak which has seen him bounce back from consecutive losses. Hooker, at one stage, had just one […]

Continue Reading Dan Hooker On Learning His Lessons From Initial Top Five Stint, Vows Not To ‘Sell His Title Shot Again’ at MMA News.

It has been a long journey full of ups and downs for Dan Hooker to work his back into the top five of the lightweight division.

After defeating Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 305, he’s riding a three-fight winning streak which has seen him bounce back from consecutive losses.

Hooker, at one stage, had just one win in his last five Octagon outings and that came after he made it into the top five for the first time in his career. And in his opinion, that skid was caused by a few crucial mistakes he made.

He has learned a lot in this four-year-period and is now confident that he won’t make the same mistakes that he did last time.

Dan Hooker Says That Fighting Michael Chandler At UFC 257 Was A Mistake On His Part

Hooker is now seemingly on the verge of what could be a title eliminator against the likes of Charles Oliveira or Justin Gaethje.

Though he took big fights against Dustin Poirier and the debuting Michael Chandler the last time he was in this position, he believes that the latter in particular was a mistake.

“Iron” Mike would hit the ground running in the promotion by stopping the Kiwi fighter in the opening round in Abu Dhabi.

Hooker didn’t need to risk his ranking against a new arrival like Chandler, even if competing in the co-main event of a Conor McGregor card was a big opportunity for him.

The major issue with taking this fight is that it took place during the COVID-19 pandemic where New Zealand had very strict regulations, which compromised his preparations.

Having admitted in an interview with ESPN Australia that he has a whole new level of respect for the team around him, Hooker said that he has learned from the missteps that he has made in his career and isn’t going to waste this opportunity.

“I kind of have learnt that from my first rodeo, is to just kind of not do anything dumb this time around. I mean the last time I was number five, 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. so it was not the smartest of decisions so I guess this time around, I’m just not gonna do anything dumb or sell my title shot again.”

Read also: Israel Adesanya’s Coach Says Du Plessis Defeat Better Than ‘Unexplainable’ Strickland Upset: ‘It Was A Good Loss…’

Continue Reading Dan Hooker On Learning His Lessons From Initial Top Five Stint, Vows Not To ‘Sell His Title Shot Again’ at MMA News.

Report – Dan Hooker returns, meets Jalin Turner at UFC 285 on March 4.

Dan Hooker, UFC, UFC 285, Jalin TurnerCity Kickboxing staple, Dan Hooker is set for his next Octagon outing on March 4. – drawing surging lightweight finisher, Jalin Turner at UFC 285 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.  Hooker, the current #11 ranked lightweight contender, featured most recently at UFC 281 back in November of last year, stopping Claudio Puelles […]

Dan Hooker, UFC, UFC 285, Jalin Turner

City Kickboxing staple, Dan Hooker is set for his next Octagon outing on March 4. – drawing surging lightweight finisher, Jalin Turner at UFC 285 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. 

Hooker, the current #11 ranked lightweight contender, featured most recently at UFC 281 back in November of last year, stopping Claudio Puelles with a series of body kicks to secure an eventual second round TKO victory.

Jalin Turner announces his expected clash with Dan Hooker at UFC 285

As for Turner, the #10 ranked challenger managed to most recently hand Dan Hooker’s City Kickboxing teammate, Brad Riddell a dominant first round guillotine choke in just 45-seconds back in July at UFC 276. The victory earned Turner a Performance of the Night bonus. News of Hooker’s return against Turner was first noted during an interview with the latter on Inside Fighting.

2-4 in his last six Octagon appearances, Hooker has landed wins over the aforenoted, Puelles, and Nasrat Haqparast, suffering defeats at lightweight and featherweight to Dustin Poirier, Michael Chandler, Islam Makhachev, and Arnold Allen. 

22-12 as a professional, Hooker has secured UFC victories over the likes of Jim Miller, Gilbert Burns, Al Iaquinta, and Paul Felder to name a few.

For Turner, the surging lightweight contender landed his stunning fifth consecutive victory with his submission win over Riddell back in July of last year, adding to prior successes over Jamie Mullarkey, Uros Medic, Brok Weaver, and Joshua Cuilbao during that run.

A product of Dana White’s Contender Series, Turner’s sole promotional losses have come against Vicente Luque, and Matt Frevola. 

UFC 285 takes place on March 4. from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada – with a vacant heavyweight title fight between Jon Jones, and Ciryl Gane slated to take main event honors.

Chael Sonnen ‘Surprised’ By Dan Hooker’s Top 5 Ranking After UFC 305 Win: ‘That Should Not Have Happened’

Apparently beating a top five contender doesn’t warrant a place inside the top five… That’s according to former UFC title challenger Chael Sonnen, who has been reflecting on the events that unfolded at this past weekend’s pay-per-view event at the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia. Among the biggest winners to emerge from UFC 305 was […]

Continue Reading Chael Sonnen ‘Surprised’ By Dan Hooker’s Top 5 Ranking After UFC 305 Win: ‘That Should Not Have Happened’ at MMA News.

Apparently beating a top five contender doesn’t warrant a place inside the top five…

That’s according to former UFC title challenger Chael Sonnen, who has been reflecting on the events that unfolded at this past weekend’s pay-per-view event at the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia.

Among the biggest winners to emerge from UFC 305 was Dan Hooker, a lightweight fan favorite who enjoyed a difficult fall from grace during the pandemic. In more recent years, however, “The Hangman” has returned to winning ways in style.

And after defending his place in the rankings opposite Claudio Puelles in late 2022 before making a statement in victory over the highly regarded Jalin Turner in 2023, Hooker’s first outing of this year saw him leap back into the title conversation.

The New Zealander came out on the right side of a split decision verdict opposite the highly regarded Mateusz Gamrot. And this week he was rewarded with a rise into the top five, where his defeated opponent previously sat.

While that didn’t come as a surprise to many, Sonnen was shocked. And he sees it as a mistake on the part of the rankings panel…

Sonnen Questions Hooker’s High Place In UFC Lightweight Top 15

During a video recently uploaded to his YouTube channel, Sonnen reflected on Hooker’s triumph Down Under this past weekend and commented on talk of him sharing the cage with Charles Oliveira next.

At one point, “The American Gangster” noted “The Hangman’s” recent surge up the pecking order at 155 pounds, expressing surprise and disagreement with Hooker being granted a place inside the top five.

“I owe an apology. … It was stated from Conner Burks, ‘Tatted Dan Hooker is undefeated and about to be ranked in the top five.’ I wrote back and said, ‘Well, you’re half right.’ … I have to apologize to Conner,” Sonnen said. “Hooker got ranked in the top five. That should not have happened.

“I’m surprised that that happened. We don’t know who that rankings committee is, but I think we can comfortably understand that Conner is one of them, they spoke, and that’s how they did it,” Sonnen jokingly added.

Regardless, Hooker is indeed now a top five contender on MMA’s biggest stage, and he’ll look to ride that momentum all the way into a first title shot down the line.

Continue Reading Chael Sonnen ‘Surprised’ By Dan Hooker’s Top 5 Ranking After UFC 305 Win: ‘That Should Not Have Happened’ at MMA News.

Paddy Pimblett Reacts To Dan Hooker’s Upset Win Over Mateusz Gamrot At UFC 305: ‘Could Be A Nice Fight For Me…’

One of the clear highlights of the UFC 305 pay-per-view this past weekend was the lightweight contest between Mateusz Gamrot and Dan Hooker. Given Gamrot’s position in the division and recent wins, many expected him to get this victory to take one more step closer to a title shot. However, “The Hangman” had other plans. […]

Continue Reading Paddy Pimblett Reacts To Dan Hooker’s Upset Win Over Mateusz Gamrot At UFC 305: ‘Could Be A Nice Fight For Me…’ at MMA News.

One of the clear highlights of the UFC 305 pay-per-view this past weekend was the lightweight contest between Mateusz Gamrot and Dan Hooker.

Given Gamrot’s position in the division and recent wins, many expected him to get this victory to take one more step closer to a title shot. However, “The Hangman” had other plans.

He managed to win a split decision and a top five ranking spot following a great clash between them, which sent the Perth crowd crazy after witnessing the Fight of the Night bonus winner.

One fellow lightweight contender who had his eye on this clash was Paddy Pimblett. “The Baddy” recently entered the top 15 at 155 pounds with a submission win over King Green at UFC 304.

He gave his live reaction to the fight on his YouTube channel, where before the first bell sounded, he teed up the idea of meeting either man down the line.

“I could end up fighting one of these couldn’t I?”

Paddy Pimblett Agreed With Decision, Tees Up Dan Hooker Encounter In The Future

Like many, Pimblett agreed that Gamrot was the favorite going in. He did, however, make a point of stating that Hooker shouldn’t have been such a big underdog due to the caliber of opponents he has faced.

“The Baddy” wasn’t surprised to see “Gamer” get takedowns, but over the course of the fight, he watched as “The Hangman” kept pouring on the pressure with his forward momentum.

The fight was a close one, which the scorecards and Pimblett’s reaction seconded. But the former Cage Warriors champion did agree that Hooker did enough to get his hand raised.

While there may be 10 ranking spots between them, “The Baddy” would be open to testing himself against the fan favorite in the future.

“Fight of the night so far of what I’ve watched. Let’s see the decision anyway. I reckon Hooker, lad, to be honest. 29-28 Gamrot. 29-28 Hooker, upset, Dan Hooker back in the top five,” Pimblett said. “Could be a nice fight for me in the future.”

Continue Reading Paddy Pimblett Reacts To Dan Hooker’s Upset Win Over Mateusz Gamrot At UFC 305: ‘Could Be A Nice Fight For Me…’ at MMA News.