Following his knock out win over James Vick, Dan Hooker let it be known he was looking for a top tier opponent in the lightweight division. “I feel like Al Iaquinta’s the one that makes sense. That name definitely stands out to me.” Through some confusion Hooker appeared to be under the impression Iaquinta wasn’t actually interested in the fight. Hooker said via Twitter “UFC told me you turned down the fight. Quit acting like you want to fight me, you don’t.” He went on “If I’m lying the fight would be booked already. Put up or shut up.” Well, ask and you shall receive. News broke late Sunday night that both fighters had verbally agreed to the bout scheduled for October 5th in Melbourne Australia.
We’ve seen this trend leading up to UFC bouts before. A lot of confusion and miscommunication while UFC match makers are putting cards together. One side believes the fight is locked in, while the other camp hasn’t even been contacted. This situation was just that. Hooker was under the impression that Iaquinta wasn’t serious about the fight, while in reality the fight had never even been offered to the Serra Long Lightweight.
Hooker (18-8 MMA, 8-4 UFC) most recently comes off an impressive knockout win over James Vick. The up and coming Lightweight has also recorded wins over the likes of Ross Pearson and Jim Miller. Prior to his win over Vick, Hooker was knocked out by Edson Barbosa in December 2018. Iaquinta(14-5-1 MMA, 9-4 UFC) is 6-2 over his last eight fights. While he scored an impressive unanimous decision win over Kevin Lee, the two losses to Khabib Nurmagomedov and Donald Cerrone respectively were ones that showcased the toughness of the the New Yorker. Both losses went all five rounds and include a Fight of the Night Bonus against Cerrone back in May.
The matchup between Iaquinta ranked #6 in the division and Hooker #14 has all the makings of a classic. A great opportunity for Iaquinta to bounce back after his May loss, as well as a chance for Hooker to jump into the Top 10. The card will be headlined by a bout between Robert Whittaker and Israel Adesanya to unify the middle weight title.
-Matt Pellicane
Iaquinta Nation 