UFC lightweight Dan Hooker says that he is willing to be the man to welcome Usman Nurmagomedov to the Octagon if he signs with the UFC.
Nurmagomedov is the hottest free agent in MMA right now after his last contract with PFL expired following a KO win over Archie Colgan at PFL New York in July.
The Russian is under a 90-day exclusive negotiating window with the PFL before he can talk to other promotions, but the expectation is that he will wait out the three months and get a chance to talk to the UFC before making a decision on where his next home will be.
If he does sign with the UFC, then Hooker says that he’s the man the UFC matchmakers will call to welcome the undefeated Russian to the Octagon.
Dan Hooker Open to Fighting Usman Nurmagomedov
Speaking to Submission Radio, Hooker confirmed that he is ready and willing to fight Nurmagomedov if and when he makes his UFC debut.
“It’s the same thing as when I fought (Michael) Chandler, it’s the same thing with this (Salahdine) Parnasse guy. It’ll be the same thing with Usman. No one else will take the fight. You think Ilia Topuria’s gonna take that risk of fighting an unranked non-UFC fighter? None of these other guys in the division wanna risk it. So they call up Dan Hooker, offer him a bit of danger money, and he welcomes these boys to the big leagues,” Hooker said.
“It’s the same thing as when I fought Chandler, it’s the same thing with this Parnasse guy. It’ll be the same thing with Usman.
No one else will take the
Dan Hooker Returns at UFC Paris
Hooker fights this Saturday at UFC Paris when he battles promotional newcomer Salahdine Parnasse in the main event of the evening.
The Kiwi is a huge underdog in the latest betting odds, with him being a +425 underdog to Paransse, who is a massive -600 favorite in his UFC debut.
Hooker enters this fight coming off back-to-back stoppage losses to Benoit Saint Denis and Arman Tsarukyan, while Parnasse is coming off five straight wins and fighting in his home country of France, so it is understandable why Hooker is the underdog here despite his vast experience fighting in the UFC.
Dan Hooker Willing to Welcome Usman Nurmagomedov to UFC