Dan Hooker was among the handful of fighters who outshone the rest at the recently concluded UFC 305 spectacle at the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia. The 34-year-old captured his third straight win in a back-and-forth contest against Mateusz Gamrot that received the Fight of the Night honors.
Hooker engaged in a grueling three-round affair with Gamrot, neutralizing his opponent's grappling advances with his striking proficiency. 'The Hangman' was in his element on fight night, displaying flashes of striking brilliance, while also claiming that he "loves this sh*t" when his cornermen were chalking out the strategy between rounds.
While skills pay the bills in the context of a competitive setting, the intrinsic drive to push through challenges is what shapes a true fighter. Hooker took to Instagram to post a picture of him following the fight, suggesting that heart and courage are qualities that cannot be taught. He wrote:
"Can’t teach ticker baby."
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Check out the post below:
Overall, this past weekend proved to be a week of sporting glory for New Zealand despite a few setbacks. Kai Kara-France inched closer to the title contention picture with a TKO victory over Steve Erceg, while the All Blacks (The New Zealand national rugby union team) triumphed 42-10 against Argentina in their Rugby Championship match.
The official account of the All Blacks reacted to Hooker's post with a one-word reaction, writing:
"Huuuuuuge!!."
Check out the reaction below:
Dan Hooker outlines his plans and potential fights following UFC 305 win
Dan Hooker seems to be steering the ship, confidently calling his shots for his next octagon assignment. 'The Hangman' even ufc-305-just-snake-fight-off-michael-chandler" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-is-sponsored="false">issued a challenge to Conor McGregor following his split decision win over Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 305.
During a recent interview with The MacLife, Hooker weighed in on his possibilities, claiming that the matchmakers want him to fight Charles Oliviera next. He said:
"They want Charles. That’s a good fight. But there’s heaps of cool sh*t I could do. The lay of the land is pretty crazy. It’s such a wild sport, as well. We’ll see how it plays out... I couldn’t care less, mate. [I’ll fight] all of them, even Arman. I said to Hunter, I said to Sean [Shelby], I’d like to fight Arman because screw it... We’ll go the toughest way to the title we possibly can."
Catch Hooker's comments below (7:15 onwards):