Morning report: Dan Hooker reflects knockout loss against Michael Chandler: ‘You prepare for worst case scenarios, but even that took the crown’

UFC 257 didn’t go as planned for Dan Hooker. Coming from one of the 2020 Fights of the Year (a unanimous decision loss to Dustin Poirier), Hooker set out to place himself in the lightweight title photo with a win over former Bellator lightweight champion Michael Chandler. Instead, Hooker was eliminated in the first round. Since the loss, Hooker hasn’t spoken about what exactly happened until Sunday.

Speak with Radio entry, Hooker reflected on his loss to Chandler, and for a man who just got knocked out at the co-main event of what will be one of the biggest pay-per-views this year, ‘The Hangman’ seems to be upbeat.

“To be honest, I had nothing to say,” Hooker explained. ‘As if a week has passed and what can you say? What can you say? You have good days and bad days. You get into things like this and prepare for worst-case scenarios, but even that took the cake. (Laughs). Even then, I was amazed at how bad it went. That was the most surprising. So I thought, what can you say? I had no words to describe it. You come to and then you’re like, I just wasted four months of my life for that. “

Hooker was equally candid about the circumstances leading to the knockout. Chandler went low with a punch to the body, then launched a hook to the head that floored Hooker, leading to the finish, and after watching the fight again, Hooker put it down because he just screwed up.

“That’s such a funny thing, zigzagging and should have seen,” Hooker said. ‘That’s all. Fighting is like a mixture of thinking and reacting. You balance your process thinking and then your reactions. I felt like I was calm, could see everything, thought, was sharp. I just relied on my responses to avoid that blow and it disappointed me. It is difficult to describe. It is such an obvious mistake and such a very costly mistake.

He changed levels. I think I relied on my response time. He sold the level switch well. I thought he was going for a takedown, comes up with a bang. There are a million things I could have done that would have changed that. There are a million different responses that I could have done that are not happening. But it did. What can you do? I certainly don’t have a time machine. I think Floyd Mayweather has a time machine. If anyone has a time machine, Floyd Mayweather has a time machine. I don’t have a time machine. “

Precious indeed. Hooker now has a two fight loss streak in the UFC and his next fight will be extremely important to get back into the win column. Fortunately, he will have another fight. During the official announcement, Hooker took off his gloves in the cage, leading the commentary crew to speculate whether Hooker would retire after the loss. But Hooker says that was just a moment of frustration, not goodbye.

“You’re always frustrated after a loss,” Hooker explained. “(It was) a balance of everything. Pure frustration, you are disappointed, and in that moment I thought, ‘I’m done! (Laughs) I’m done with this sh * tty sport! I’m ready!’ Then you go back to the hotel and think about it and realize you’re not good at anything else either, so it’s okay (laughs) “I kind of painted myself in a corner here.” (Laughs).

‘People think you’re going to roll around depressed and not get out of bed, but I know what it is. This is a sport that I have been doing and following all my adult life. It is always a possibility. A loss like this, you don’t roll around in depression super upset. It goes without saying. It is what it is. I can honestly say I am no more upset than when I lost the fight with Poirier. “

In the grand scheme of things, Hooker seems to bear this loss as well as can be expected. There’s one thing that seems to bother him a bit, though: the suggestion that Chandler KOs him hints at sustainability issues.

“Believe me, nobody has a good chin,” Hooker said. ‘You get hit with those gloves on – I wouldn’t put my chin in the air and let my wife hit my chin. She would probably knock me out. Does this mean she’s a knockout puncher? People just get hit in the chin and people not in the chin. Nobody has a good chin. That’s a myth. “

Hooker is currently in quarantine to return home from Abu Dhabi.

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Retirement. Coach Javier Mendez’s advice to Khabib Nurmagomedov: ‘Hold your ground for SAP or retire’.

155. Patricio Pitbull expects Michael Chandler to beat Dustin Poirier ‘easily’, but still won’t be MMA’s best lightweight.

Salt. Ilima-Lei Macfarlane continues after ‘boring as sh * t’ title loss against Bellator champion Juliana Velasquez.

Bad boy. Huntington Beach City Council to consider the removal of Tito Ortiz as Mayor Pro Tem.

Wrestling. Olympic champion Jordan Burroughs explains why he never made the switch from wrestling to MMA.

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Interview with Kamaru Usman.

UFC new series with Paul Felder and Michael Chiesa.

Thrill and the Agony Sneak Peek.

Bas thinks Khabib is coming back.

Rank Alistair Overeem’s opponents.

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Severe MMA. About Conor McGregor, Alistair Overeem, BJ Penn and Askren-Paul.

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Talk trash.

Call.

Apparently his hot sauce is actually really good.

Agree.

Khabib just rolls around in flip flops.

Dan Ige is working on the body.

Explanation.

Tony has another child.

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Ben Rothwell (38-13) vs. Philipe Lins (14-5); UFC Fight Night, March 13.

Chase Sherman (15-6) vs. Parker Porter (11-6); UFC Fight Night, April 17.

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Great quote from Dan Hooker who didn’t make it to the top:

“I was like, ‘Maybe I’ll drink my grief away’ but then I went to the bars and it’s $ 20 a beer in Abu Dhabi, so I said, ‘Well that plan is out the bloody window, I’m going back to the gym.’

Then it seems like a good hang.

Thanks for reading and see you tomorrow.

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