Dan Hooker of New Zealand celebrates his victory over Al Iaquinta of the United States fight in their Lightweight bout during UFC 243 at Marvel Stadium on October 06, 2019 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Darrian Traynor/Getty Images)
Justin Gaethje doesn’t have a rival for his next fight but Dan Hooker seems keen to take on the American
New Zealand UFC star Dan Hooker was open to a fight against Justin Gaethje as he keeps an eye out for his next opponent.
Hooker was on a three-fight win streak but lost to Dustin Poirier at UFC: Poirier vs Hooker. This was a bit of a blow to the 30-year-old as he seemed set for a rise up the rankings and a possible title shot in the future too.
However, Poirier showed off his championship calibre and got the better of Hooker. The loss kept Hooker at #5 in the Lightweight rankings but he is looking a little higher.
Ali Abdelaziz claimed that Justin Gaethje would be the ones ranked #2 to #4. Gaethje is still ranked #1 in the division despite getting dominated by the champion, Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 254.
However, Hooker put up his name and wanted to challenge Gaethje, respectfully:
Abdelaziz explained why he didn’t put Hooker’s name in his tweet and the Egyptian also had a ton of respect for the Kiwi:
Gaethje might have lost to Khabib but no one has gotten the better of the Russian. The American isn’t set for a fight anytime soon and it will be interesting to see who he takes on.
However, a Hooker vs Gaethje fight isn’t possible now, at least based on the rankings. Poirier and Conor McGregor are ranked above the Kiwi star and will meet next year.
The other name above Hooker is Tony Ferguson and that could have been an amazing fight. However, Ferguson is busy with #6 ranked Charles Oliveira for UFC 256. Hooker would have to play the waiting game for now, and watch how the others ranked around him do in the division.
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