Tag: Dan Hooker

UFC lightweight Dan Hooker has revealed that he’s turned to some ‘trusted’ people for help in turning around his fortunes inside the Octagon.

Entering the summer of 2020, Hooker was ranked inside the lightweight top five, riding a three-fight win streak, coming off a main event victory over Paul Felder, and boasted a 7-1 record in the division.

Fast forward to summer 2022, and “The Hangman” finds himself at a crossroads in his career following four defeats in five outings. After setbacks against Dustin Poirier, Michael Chandler, and Islam Makhachev left him out of contention at 155 pounds, Hooker sought a rebound in his former weight class, featherweight.

But at UFC London earlier this year, the New Zealander’s pursuit of fresh pastures saw him land in stoppageville once again, this time at the hands of Arnold Allen after just two-and-a-half minutes.

Now nearly three months past his failed trip to England’s capital, Hooker has spoken about his future in an interview with The Mac Life. The veteran fighter noted the key issue that him and his team have identified following his poor run of form: he simply can’t say, “No.”

“I definitely identified that as a major problem, my impulsive decision-making. If I get offered something, you don’t have to ask me twice,” acknowledged Hooker. “I’m just like, ‘Yeah, alright.’ With the Allen fight, I knew at the time, I was telling myself, ‘This is a sh*t time,’ I had tested positive for Covid, hadn’t trained properly with my team for six months, was recovering from Covid, and they’re like, ’10 weeks, you wanna fly to the complete opposite side of the world and fight someone?’

“In my head, I was like, ‘Nah, this is a sh*t idea,’ but as I’m saying that to myself, I’m typing like, ‘Yeah, cool, I’ll see you there.’ I definitely identified that I cannot — I thought I could control it… But it’s just, nah, it can’t be,” added Hooker.

That, as well as a previous comment that saw Hooker admit to a level of arrogance in thinking that he could compete at the highest level given the conditions he was under, has left “The Hangman” making changes.

Hooker Hands Over Booking Duties

Having identified the biggest issues in his mindset and approach, Hooker revealed to Oscar Willis the big adjustment that he’s made ahead of his attempt to return to form back at lightweight next time out.

“We’ve put some buffers in place, some people that I trust. Obviously, my coach, Eugene Bareman, and Ash (Belcastro) run a management company and they take care of a lot of the boys… That’s like, someone I trust with my career, Eugene Bareman, so he’s the one handling things now,” revealed Hooker.

City Kickboxing coach Bareman co-owns Attain Peace Sports Management. By handing over admin duties to the team, Hooker will join good company, with the likes of UFC champions Israel Adesanya and Alexander Volkanovski also under the care of Bareman.

Do you think handing over booking duties to a management team will help Dan Hooker bounce back?

Continue Reading Dan Hooker Reveals How He’s Fixing The Flaw That’s Led To Losing Skid at MMA News.

While he doesn’t have a particular name in mind, UFC veteran Dan Hooker expects his next fight to come in familiar circumstances.

When he does return to the Octagon, Hooker will be hoping to rebound form the worst run of form in his career to date. Having fallen to defeats against Dustin Poirier, Michael Chandler, and Islam Makhachev in the past couple of years, “The Hangman” decided to return to featherweight this year.

His search for the Hooker of old brought the New Zealander to Arnold Allen’s doorstep, with the pair colliding in the co-main event of UFC London in March. Having decided it was a night to throw down, Hooker traded leather with “Almighty” from the start.

Marking his fourth loss in five bouts, Hooker was finished inside the opening round for the second consecutive appearance. Being a fan of the brawler is not an easy ride, and the next loop on it will seemingly see him return to 155 pounds.

But despite his recent form, Hooker isn’t planning massive changes to his approach.

While he’s open to following the kind of technical and strategic gameplan that secured him victory over Nasrat Haqparast at UFC 266, the New Zealander doesn’t expect to adjust his willingness to fight anyone and everyone.

Losing skid or not, the motto remains ‘bring one, bring them all’.

Being Ducked? Call “The Hangman”

During a recent appearance on Submission Radio, Hooker discussed his recent woes and his next steps inside the cage.

While he could confirm that there won’t be a sophomore appearances for his second stint at featherweight, Hooker couldn’t provide any potential names for his next lightweight outing.

However, the 32-year-old is expecting a similar sort of scenario that brought him to the doors of the debuting Chandler in January 2021 and rising Dagestani phenom Makhachev on short notice last October.

“It’ll be whoever it’s gonna be. Obviously, I have my inklings, but it’ll be like all those other situations,” said Hooker. “You run back and you look at who I’ve fought, you just look at the division and you ask yourself, ‘Who don’t people wanna fight?’ And that’s who I’ll probably end up fighting. Who’s getting turned down left, right, and center? That’s who I’ll fight next. So you can take a look at the division, ask yourself, ‘Who doesn’t anyone wanna fight?’ That’s the guy.

“That’s why I’m not that fussed about—I can get back in the mix. I can get back in the mix in a heartbeat,” added Hooker. “You can’t count a dog like me out of the game. It’s just not how it works.”

Whoever he shares the cage with next, fans of the entertaining New Zealander will be hoping to see him return to winning ways and make his way back into the mix at 155 pounds.

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

Continue Reading Hooker On Potential Next Opponent: “Who Doesn’t Anyone Wanna Fight?” at MMA News.