????: MMA Junkie
Dan Hooker (20-8) continues his ascent through the ranks of the lightweight division. And next standing in his way will be Dustin Poirier (25-6) – not Justin Gaethje.
MMA Junkie reported on Wednesday that the tandem is being targeted as the main event of UFC San Diego on May 16.
Following Hooker’s most recent win over Paul Felder at UFC Auckland he called out the aforementioned “Highlight” in Gaethje. What would be a rightful step up after stringing together his third straight exciting victory seemed rather appropriate – and sustainably violent.
However, Hooker will get an even more logical matchup as he instead gets Louisiana’s “Diamond,” Poirier.
Any way that you match the lightweight top 10 in the UFC you’re sure to get some awesome matchups. In Hooker vs. Poirier, we get exactly that, no matter where the fight goes. The big difference between Poirier and Gaethje as Hooker’s next dance partner comes down to recent in-Octagon results.
The former World Series of Fighting king in Gaethje is riding a chaotic three-fight winning streak himself that consists all of knockout finishes. Therefore positioning himself for the next crack at the title or at the very least … an elusive meeting with former UFC champion Conor McGregor. A pairing that has had conflicting reports shared in regard to its happening.
As for Poirier, he’s looking to rebound off of his tough defeat to the current 155-pound kingpin in Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 242 in September. A loss that snapped his six-fight unbeaten streak.
Just when looking at what’s in front of Hooker at this moment in the rankings, Poirier is the best option with the next best being the loser of next month’s Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson tilt (knock on wood). That, of course, is assuming Gaethje isn’t left out to dry like we’ve feared since McGregor got announced to fight Donald Cerrone this past January.
A win for Poirier gets him right back on track and keeps him in the thick of things among title contention. For Hooker, he would inch himself that much closer to a title shot after defeating a former interim crown holder.
There are no wrong or bad matchups to make at lightweight necessarily, but this one is perfectly logical and a hell of a main event for UFC San Diego.
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