Dan Hooker says he “got bored” watching Islam Makhachev fight Thiago Moises at UFC Vegas 31

UFC lightweight contender Dan Hooker says he “got bored” watching Islam Makhachev fight Thiago Moises in the main event of UFC Vegas 31.

Hooker is the No. 8 ranked lightweight in the UFC and right behind him at No. 9 is Makhachev, who defeated Moises via fourth-round submission in the headliner of this past Saturday’s UFC Vegas 31 card. Speaking to Submission Radio following Makhachev’s win, Hooker was asked if he is interested in facing Makhachev next. While Hooker knows this fight is possible just based on the rankings, Hooker says he was “bored” watching Makhachev fight against Moises and can’t imagine what his New Zealand fans would think if they ever fought on his home soil, unlike someone who is a striker such as Paul Felder.

“I kind of was watching and on fast forward. I got bored. So, I can’t really, like, yeah. It kind of is what it is,” Hooker said (h/t MMAFighting). “Coming into the main event of UFC Auckland, I knew Felder was going to be the fight, and then Islam starts chiming in. So, I started having a bit of banter with him, saying that I would have to give away tickets to the event in the car park of Pak-n-Save if I got booked with Islam Makhachev. So, I can’t say I regret not going out of my way to fight Islam, to put on a five-round war in my hometown with Paul Felder. And if it would’ve been anything like he performed in his main event, that’s not the style of fight that the Kiwi fans want to see. They want to see two blokes go out there and really challenge themselves and see who’s better. Like I said, I kind of got bored watching his main event in fast forward. So, I couldn’t imagine watching the damn thing live in my hometown. I think there would have been a bloody riot after the fight.”

Is Dan Hooker vs. Islam Makhachev the fight to make?