Dan Hooker poses with Israel Adesanya and team after long-awaited return to City Kickboxing
Dan Hooker has finally found his way back to the hallowed grounds of City Kickboxing. 'The Hangman' recently shared pictures of his return to his home gym with fans on social media. The 31-year-old can be seen posing with his teammates Israel Adesanya, Kai Kara France, Mike 'Blood Diamond' Mathetha and Carlos Ulberg.
"Nothing like being back at CKB grinding with the boys. Another Sunday [spider emoji] in the bank. [banknote emoji]"
Dan Hooker is currently preparing for his clash against No.7-ranked UFC featherweight Arnold Allen. The fight is set to take place in London at UFC Fight Night: Volkov vs. Aspinall on March 19.
Hooker is coming off a first-round submission loss at the hands of Islam Makhachev at UFC 261 back in October 2021. This marked his third loss in five fights.
'The Hangman' has been training with Israel Adesanya and co. as the latter inches towards his highly anticipated clash against former foe Robert Whittaker. The rematch is set to take place at UFC 271 in February 2022.
Having overcome all hurdles in the division, it seems like 'The Last Stylebender' is currently on a crusade to lap his colleagues. The Nigerian previously locked horns with Robert Whittaker back in October 2019 at UFC 243, where he finished 'The Reaper' in the second round.
Dan Hooker is lobbying for a title shot in the featherweight division
Dan Hooker has failed to achieve the kind of success he hoped for in the lightweight division, having recently suffered losses against three of the top five 155 pounders in the promotion.
Fighting for the lightweight title under these circumstances is a distant dream at best. However, the featherweight division is uncharted territory for Hooker and a series of wins against ranked fighters could earn him a shot at gold soon enough.
'The Hangman' believes a move down to featherweight following an easy weight cut could offer him the opportunity to lay claim to the coveted title.
In a recent conversation with ESPN, the Kiwi said:
"Sitting and treading water in the lightweight division, that doesn't excite me. But moving down to the featherweight and getting a win over a top 10 fighter puts me straight back in the mix. This is not treading water. So I make, in my opinion, a very easy weight cut and fight down a weight class, and then you're one fight away from being back in the mix and back in title contention."
“Once more unto the breach, dear friends.”
8 weeks out, March 19th, UFC London. 🤙 https://t.co/DvodP1pjgl