Dan Hooker is putting his UFC layoff to good use as the lightweight contender channeled his inner Kimbo Slice this week by hosting a backyard fight league in New Zealand.
It’s been a little while since fight fans have seen “Hangman” compete inside of the UFC’s Octagon. Hooker is coming off a spectacular performance against Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 305 back in Aug. 2024 that extended his current win streak to three and subsequently lined him up to fight Justin Gaethje at UFC 313 this past March. It was going to be Hooker’s biggest fight to date and a chance for him to creep into the lightweight title picture.
Unfortunately, Hooker suffered a gnarly hand injury that required surgery and booted him from his matchup against Gaethje. Making matters worse, Hooker suffered a setback in his recovery and just had a second surgery on his hand earlier this month. The ailment has left Hooker on the UFC sidelines, but it gives him more free time to branch out and do some pretty awesome Dan Hooker things.
On Saturday, Hooker took to social media to share a backyard fight league that he put together in New Zealand. It may not be as prolific as Kimbo Slice’s legendary backyard fighting in Miami, Fla., but Hooker is doing his best. The clip he shared even featured a monstrous one-punch knockout, which “Hangman” said was the first fight of the day.
Check it out above and below:
“Yesterday, 32 men gave me their word. Today, 32 honored that agreement,” wrote Hooker via Instagram.
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