Dan Hooker may have his second fight of the year booked. MMA Junkie’s Mike Bohn reports that the UFC is trying to matchup a lightweight fight between Hooker and Dustin Poirier at UFC Fight Night 175 on May 16. Bohn also reports that neither side has signed a fight contract yet and the UFC has yet to make an announcement.
Hooker is coming off of a hard-fought decision win over Paul Felder at UFC Fight Night 168 on February 23. Even though Hooker took some damage from his fight with Felder, He is looking to compete rather soon. Hooker is on a three-fight win streak, defeating Felder, Al Iaquinta, and James Vick. He is ranked fifth in the lightweight division and a win over Poirier can make him the number one contender for the lightweight championship.
Poirier is trying to bounce back from a submission loss against lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 242 on September 7, 2019. Before his loss to Nurmagomedov, Poirier was on a four-fight win streak that led to him becoming the interim lightweight champion. Poirier has been looking to fight Nate Diaz for his return fight, but Diaz had no interest in fighting according to Poirier. He is ranked second the lightweight division and a win over Hooker can put him a fight away from fighting for the championship again.