It’s been an interesting path leading up to Fight week for Al Iaquinta vs. Dan Hooker at UFC 243. Starting with Hooker calling out Iaquinta after a knockout win over James Vick, followed by speculation if the fight would actually happen. 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.”
The New Yorker Iaquinta is never one to back down from a fight. “I really don’t think he expected me to say okay” Iaquinta told Matt Serra and Jim Norton on the UFC Unfiltered podcast. Meanwhile Iaquinta had verbally told UFC he wanted the fight creating some disconnect between both sides. Iaquinta went on “Lets go, you want it I’m giving you what you want and I’m going to make you pay for it.”
Dan Hooker (18-8, 8-4 UFC) is currently ranked 15th in the talented Lightweight division. As a fighter on the rise he’ll look to make a statement on Saturday night against the higher ranked Iaquinta. Hooker told EMG Access “I feel like not only will I win against Iaquinta, but I can put him away by stoppage or knockout.” A tough task and a bit of a bold statement considering the Serra Longo Lightweight has never been knocked out in his career. Hooker has notable wins over Ross Pearson, Jim Miller, and most recently James Vick. The last dangerous striker Hooker fought was Edson Barbosa back in December suffering a loss via TKO.
For Iaquinta he’ll look to rebound after a loss back in May to Donald Cowboy Cerrone. “Raging” Al 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.
Iaquinta will look to make a statement of his own Saturday Night. A reminder that the 6th ranked Lightweight is still the fighter the top of the division needs to look out for. “(Ray) Longo and I always say you can’t hide who you are in that octagon” Iaquinta told UFC Countdown. “What your really made of shows when you’re in a fight.” He went on “I speak my mind outside of the octagon and back it up inside. If someone calls me out for a fight in Melbourne who am I to say no.”
The Lightweights will square off in the Co Main Event of UFC 243 in front of a crowd of almost 60,000 at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne Australia. Serra Longo teammate Aljamain Sterling told UFC Countdown “The bigger the crowd the bigger he (Iaquinta) shines. The fans down under are in for a treat.”
-Matt Pellicane
Iaquinta Nation 