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Dustin Poirier went to war with Dan The Hangman Hooker on UFC on ESPN 12 in the main event and beat him by unanimous decision. While Dan Hooker had the advantage at the start, Dustin Poirier did enough in the last few rounds to secure himself a hard-fought but well-earned victory.
With that, Dustin Poirier could just be one or two fights away from another Championship opportunity. His coach Mike Brown from American Top Team told MMA Fighting that two key things resulted in his victory over Poirier. The first was patience:
“Something we talked about was patience for sure. We know that Dustin is always going to be strong as the fight goes on and we knew Hooker tends to slow down. He showed it in past fights. He’s very good early but as he slows down, his defense gets a little bit worse and you’re able to hit him a little bit more. Where early on, when he’s full of energy, he’s able to use distance a little better and make you miss with those shots."
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He credited Dan Hooker for being tough and compared it to the Paul Felder fight where he won the first two rounds, lost the next two, and secured the split decision victory with a takedown. However, he stated that Dan Hooker's reaction time and footwork slows down as the fight goes on.
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Brown said that the other attribute that won Dustin Poirier the fight was his incredible conditioning:
“His conditioning is as good as it gets. He hits as hard in the fifth [round] as he does in the first. That’s one of his best attributes. He gets a lot of them out of there but I am 100 percent impressed with Hooker’s chin."
What's next for Dustin Poirier?
Dustin Poirier is unlikely to get a Championship opportunity as long as Khabib Nurmagomedov rules the division. If Justin Gaethje beats him at Fight Island, however, there would be a lot of interest in running back a rematch against The Highlight.
Ariel Helwani suggested that Dustin Poirier vs Tony Ferguson is the next best option for The Diamond. It would be a battle between two former Interim Champions and one that would draw a lot of interest as it would most certainly be a #1 contender's fight.
