“You can just see why people tune in to this division.”
Such were Dan Hooker’s remarks following the UFC 274 headlining lightweight title fight between Charles Oliveira and Justin Gaethje.
A back and forth, one-round war between the two renowned finishers saw an early submission finish for ‘do Bronx’, in what would have been Oliveira’s second successful title defense, had the Brazilian made the 155lb championship weight.
The ‘Hangman’, joining John Hyon Ko to host The AllStar MMA Live UFC 274 post-show, shared his thoughts on the action-packed main event.
“I was more leaning towards Gaethje,” the Kiwi admitted, believing the American would have the ability to avoid grappling situations and keep the fight standing. In the early moments of the round, he was correct.
Gaethje looked to be a dominating force in the opening minutes of the bout. Scoring two knockdowns and refusing to follow Oliveira to the ground, the D-1 wrestler knew where his strengths lie and game-planned accordingly.
However, as the saying goes, the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.
Oliveira sent Gaethje stumbling to the ground with a right hand with around two minutes left before the horn. He eventually locked in a rear-naked choke, securing the victory for himself, and the favelas of Brazil.
Hooker believes Gaethje’s unwillingness to engage the champ on the ground, due to the obvious submission threat, let Oliveira ‘off the hook’ and gave him a chance to regroup after getting hurt.
“To be able to fall to your back and recover – and then stand up when you want to stand up and get back to action…… There’s not many guys that can do that…”
“It’s an incredible ace in the back pocket to have.”
The New Zealander also noted the power of a focused fighter with momentum behind them and suggested Oliviera’s persistence had been the “real key” to his recent string of good results.
Turning his attention to the immediate fallout that followed the pay-per-view event – specifically the fan-fuelled lightweight ‘GOAT’ conversation that now seems to include the Brazilian’s name, Hooker reiterated that “people’s memories are short,” and Khabib Nurmagomedov’s “unblemished” record will be hard to beat.
“That’s the only thing that will never truly be replicated in our sport.”
With ‘The Eagle’ enjoying his retirement, the bout between Oliveira and Nurmagomedov to settle the argument once and for all seems nothing more than a dream at this point; however, the next best thing may be closer than we think.
Nurmagomedov’s protege, Islam Makhachev, is currently ranked third in the stacked UFC 155-pound division – and with the two top contenders now having lost decisively to Oliveira, the Dagestani now finds himself a likely candidate to fill the spot opposite Oliveira to fight for the now-vacant lightweight title.
“I guarantee you,” Hooker stated, discussing the future of the lightweight division.
“Whatever happens, [Islam] Makhachev is getting a title fight in Abu Dhabi later this year – Without a doubt.”
With UFC 281 being announced to grace the sands of Abu Dhabi on October 22nd of this year, Hooker believes it’s safe to assume the powers that be will campaign to have the eastern hemisphere superstar make an appearance on the card.
“The kind of money that place throws around to get these boys over there – he’s going to be part of the title picture. Regardless of who fights, if there’s another fight [before then] – Makhachev’s getting a title fight…”
“The money that they’re throwing around… there’s more at play than people kind of understand.”
