After losing three straight fights, Dan Hooker is in need of a win. The fan favorite from New Zealand returns on November 21 in Al Rayyan at UFC Qatar. He takes on former title challenger Brian Ortega in the lightweight division. The fight takes place in the ABHA Arena.
The UFC announced the booking moments ago. In the UFC Media rankings, Hooker is sitting at number 14, while Ortega holds the number 13 spot at featherweight. However, neither fighter is ranked in the UFC Meta rankings.
Never In A Boring Match-Up
The 36-year-old Hooker has fought in the UFC since 2014. Hooker came over from the Australian FC promotion as the champion. Hooker started in the featherweight division in the UFC but struggled to build a winning streak. After going 3-3 in his first three years in the UFC, he decided to go up a weight class to lightweight. That happened to be the right choice for the fighter from New Zealand. He built up a four-fight winning streak with big finishes over Jim Miller and Gilbert Burns. Hooker then lost to Edson Barboza but bounced back in a big way with wins over James Vick, Al Iaquinta and Paul Felder. Those wins earned him a main event clash with Dustin Poirier.
Following a spectacular, back-and-forth battle, Hooker ultimately dropped a unanimous decision. The New Zealander was not quite the same for some time after that war, losing two of his next three bouts. He then decided to drop back down to featherweight, but after a quick stoppage loss to Arnold Allen, Hooker reversed his decision and returned to the lightweight division. Back at lightweight, Hooker won three fights in a row again, including a big split decision win over Mateusz Gamrot that brought him back in the top of the lightweight division. That win in 2024 was his last win. Hooker lost his last three fights against Arman Tsarukyan, Benoît Saint Denis, and recently against Salahdine Parnasse. Hooker was finished in all three fights and is in desperate need of a win against Brian Ortega.
A New Division
Ortega is just like Hooker, in desperate need of a win. The 35-year-old American fighter made his UFC debut as an undefeated fighter in 2014. He won his debut, but that win was later overturned after he tested positive for banned substances. Between 2015 and 2017, Ortega won four fights in a row by finish in the third round. He overcame adversity in his fights against Clay Guida and Renato Moicano and finished both men in the final round. After also beating veteran Cub Swanson and finishing former champion Frankie Edgar by knockout in the first round, Ortega earned himself a title shot against then-champion Max Holloway. Holloway put a beating on Ortega, who wasn’t able to continue at the end of the fourth round. Ortega didn’t fight for almost two years after that loss but was able to bounce back with a dominant win over Chan Sung Jung.
That win got him another title fight, this time against champion Alexander Volkanovski. Also, this time Ortega was dominated but almost found a Hail Mary submission. Volkanovski was able to tough it out and defended the title. Since that loss to Volkanovski, Ortega has struggled heavily in the division. His only win in his last four fights was a rematch against Yair Rodríguez. In his most recent fight last year, Ortega fainted backstage after a botched weight cut. Ortega still fought a day later and lost by unanimous decision against Aljamain Sterling. Ortega decided to leave the featherweight division and go up to lightweight. He got booked twice this year for a rematch against Renato Moicano, but injuries kept him away from the Octagon. Now, fully cleared he takes on Dan Hooker in his debut at lightweight.
UFC Qatar
- Jiri Prochazka vs. Navajo Stirling
- Aljamain Sterling vs. Kevin Vallejos
- Dan Hooker vs. Brian Ortega
- Asu Almabayev vs. Kyoji Horiguchi
- Jared Cannonier vs. Ikram Aliskerov
- Aleksandre Topuria vs. Santiago Luna
- Shamil Gaziev vs. Tallison Teixeira
- Amir Albazi vs. Alessandro Costa
Dan Hooker in Desperate Search of a Win at UFC Qatar