Dan Hooker reacts to Dustin Poirier and Michael Chandler "bragging" about beating him, issues cold rematch warning: "I'm coming for all of them"
Dan Hooker is reclaiming prominence in the UFC lightweight division, and with each passing fight, his confidence is becoming more evident. Between June 2020 and March 2022, Hooker endured the sting of four losses in five fights.
However, he has left behind the extended spell of disappointing performances with solid victories in the last three fights. Hooker now enters the cage with renewed sense of purpose, collecting signature victories over the likes of Claudio Puelles, Jalin Turner, and Mateusz Gamrot. During his recent victory over Gamrot at UFC 305, he was also spotted saying, "I love this sh*t" to his coaches in between rounds.
Hooker was drawn into the crossfire of an exchange between lightweight mainstays Michael Chandler and Dustin Poirier. Chandler restored to flaunting his first-round TKO victory over 'The Hangman' on his promotional debut, asserting that the win was more impressive than Poirier's unanimous decision triumph over Hooker in the previous fight.
Poirier responded by highlighting his wins over ranked opponents. Hooker took notice of the fiery exchange and issued a cold warning for a rematch with the American lightweights. Speaking in an interview with Combat TV, he said:
"Dustin Poirier and Michael Chandler are bragging about beating me... Bro, you're bragging about beating me on 3 weeks' notice while I was training in my garage. Don't say my name unless you're willing to run it back. If they want to brag about it, they can fight me again. If you don't want to fight me again, then shut up."
Catch Hooker's comments below:
Dan Hooker plans on not doing "anything dumb" after claiming the No.5 spot in the lightweight rankings
Dan Hooker has come a long way since he dropped out of the top-five rankings with a TKO loss against Michael Chandler at UFC 257.
The 34-year-old wants to build on the momentum of his current three-fight win streak. Additionally, he's also attempting to leverage the strength of his impressive form to call out UFC stars like Conor McGregor. That being said, his past mistakes have imparted valuable lessons that he intends to harness moving forward.
Speaking in a recent interview with ESPN MMA, he said:
"I kind of have learned that from my first rodeo, right? 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 fresh out of, like, really 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."
He added:
"And [I] went and fought him [Chandler] with a guy I'd been training with 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."
Catch Hooker's comments below (5:18 onwards):