Ex-UFC Champ ‘Happy’ Dan Hooker Pulled Out of Gaethje Fight at UFC 313: ‘One of Those Two Was Going to Die’
Not everyone was sad to hear about Dan Hooker’s withdrawal.
Earlier this year, Dana White announced that Hooker and Gaethje would co-headline the promotion’s return to T-Mobile Arena this Saturday night for UFC 313. It was a guaranteed banger that had fight fans seething in anticipation.
Then the rug was pulled out from under us.
Last month, Hooker revealed that he was officially out of the fight after breaking his hand whilst training. With ‘Hangman’ set to undergo surgery, the UFC was tasked with rustling up a replacement. They’ve since done that, but there’s no denying that fans were left disappointed.
However, one guy who was actually “happy” to hear that Hooker was out. That being former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker.
“I have such mixed feelings,” Whittaker said on his MMArcade Podcast. “With Hooker out, I am happy ultimately, though, because let’s face it—Gaethje vs. Hooker, one of those two dudes was going to die. And I’m a big fan of both guys, right? But one of them wasn’t leaving the octagon. Neither of them were. It would have been amazing, like the best fight of the year, easily.
“But I’m a big fan of Hooker, and I’m a big fan of Gaethje, and I didn’t want to see one of my favorite dudes die.”
A familiar foe steps up to replace dan hooker
Taking Hooker’s spot at UFC 313 will be Rafael Fiziev, a lightweight standout who has not fought since suffering a leg injury in the second round of a scrap against Mateusz Gamrot in September 2023.
Before that, ‘Ataman’ went five rounds with Justin Gaethje at UFC 286, surrendering a majority decision to ‘The Highlight.’ Overall, Fiziev is 6-3 inside the Octagon with 50% of his wins coming by way of knockout. He walks into this weekend’s pay-per-view event having come up short in his last two outings.
As for Gaethje, it will be his first time competing since suffering an insane last-second knockout loss to Max Holloway at UFC 300 last April. Gaethje is 8-5 under the UFC banner, evenly splitting wins and losses in his last six appearances.
