Teammate Dan Hooker shares his thoughts on Israel Adesanya’s shocking TKO loss to Nassourdine Imavov: "He made a mistake"

Dan Hooker and Israel Adesanya have honed their skills alongside each other at the renowned City Kickboxing (CKB) gym in New Zealand for over a decade. Alongside teammates Kai Kara-France and Carlos Ulberg, the group have taken the CKB gym to new heights.

But Adesanya has suffered a slump in results since losing his middleweight title to Sean Strickland at UFC 293 in September 2023. For the first time in his combat sports career, which began in 2010, 'The Last Stylebender' has been defeated three times in a row.

Following his loss to Strickland, the 35-year-old was submitted by Dricus du Plessis at UFC 305 before suffering an unexpected TKO loss to Nassourdine Imavov at UFC Saudi Arabia on Feb. 1.

His longtime teammate and friend, 'The Hangman', was recently interviewed by Combat TV. Hooker was asked to share his thoughts on Adesanya's recent loss to Imavov and said:

"Yeah, the big fella. Part and parcel [of the sport]. In other games, you make a mistake and they score a try. He made a mistake and got caught with a punch. It kind of is what it is. He showed some big improvements in training camp and I'm sure he'll be back and as good as ever."

Catch Dan Hooker discussing Israel Adesanya's loss below (0:40):

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Dan Hooker previews his UFC 313 clash with Justin Gaethje

UFC 313 will be headlined by a light heavyweight title fight between champion Alex Pereira and Magomed Ankalaev. The co-main event of the card will see Justin Gaethje and Dan Hooker go to war in a five-round bout that could be a Fight of the Year winner come the end of 2025.

Both men are regarded as two of the most violent lightweights in the division, and the Kiwi recently shared an eyebrow-raising preview of his clash with Gaethje.

The No. 6-ranked contender was recently interviewed by Ariel Helwani, during which he said:

"I just think the UFC wants to see someone die. I think they want a finish. They want this fight, as well, I feel like for the fans, as well, they want to see someone go down. They want to see blood. They want to see rounds four and five... I'm happy to oblige for money."

Catch Dan Hooker previewing his fight with Justin Gaethje below: