Callouts galore as Dan Hooker's former opponent wants Justin Gaethje: "Time to fix it and prove it" 

UFC lightweights are eager to share the octagon with Justin Gaethje, as a fight against him would be a significant addition to their resumes. Originally, Gaethje was set to face No. 6-ranked Dan Hooker in a highly anticipated matchup at UFC 313 on March 8. However, Hooker has had to withdraw due to an injury, leaving Gaethje without an opponent.

No. 8-ranked lightweight contender and former KSW two-division champion Mateusz Gamrot has stepped up, offering to face Gaethje on short notice with just two weeks to prepare. In a recent post on X, Gamrot expressed his eagerness to take on the challenge, writing:

"Hooker out , I’m ready to go @Justin_Geathje. 2 weeks no matter!! @ufc @espn."

In a follow-up post, Gamrot presented his case, citing that the closely contested bout against Dan Hooker must warrant a fight against Gaethje:

"My fight with Hooker was very close and he got lucky with the judges. Time to fix it and prove it !! @Justin_Gaethje @ufc @espn @MMAJunkie."

Gamrot faced Hooker at UFC 305 in August 2024. The back-and-forth battle saw both fighters having their moments. However, Hooker's strikes seemed to have a more immediate impact compared to Gamrot's. Two of the three judges scored the contest in Hooker's favor, declaring him the winner by split decision.

A potential fight against Gaethje would give Gamrot a second chance to break into the top five of the division. He previously came up short in his UFC 280 fight against Beneil Dariush, who was a top-three UFC lightweight contender at the time.

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Other lightweights that are eager to step in for Dan Hooker at UFC 313

No. 10-ranked lightweight contender Renato Moicano and Gaethje's former opponent Rafael Fiziev, have both offered to step in on short notice to face 'The Highlight' at UFC 313.

Moicano, who recently suffered a first-round submission defeat against champion Islam Makhachev in another short-notice title fight at UFC 311, expressed his interest on X, writing:

"2 weeks is good! I have enough time for 2 or 3 sparring sessions! I will be ready if they call! #ufc"

Fiziev, who previously lost to Gaethje in an exciting back-and-forth battle at UFC 286, also pitched a rematch, stating:

"Let's run it back @Justin_Gaethje."

Fiziev, who has not competed since suffering a TKO (knee injury) defeat against Mateus Gamrot in September 2023, expressed his desire to face Beneil Dariush after Dariush's original opponent, Moicano, was pulled from the fight to preserve the main event featuring Makhachev.

'Ataman' also claimed that he had accepted fights against four different opponents in recent months, but none of those matchups materialized.