Dan Hooker is currently unable to compete in approved combat matches, but that doesn't mean he can't organize a backyard or two.
Although MMA World had a group break on past Memorial Day weekends, the holidays didn’t stop the top-ranked UFC lightweight contender from fighting in his home. Last Saturday, Hook invited 32 men to his New Zealand backyard to win the internet with a minute-by-minute fight.
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Hooker spoke on Wednesday’s edition of the Ariel Helvani Show, explaining how this wild, backward concept was realized.
"I contacted them some time ago through a crazy Russian fight show, headed to Thailand, and they put it in, just like a warehouse," Hook said. "They took me out and hosted it. So I brought a few fighters from New Zealand, but I had nothing to do with the activities organized or planned. Then I just saw how they got out. They had 32 people, a minute of fighting. I took the idea and I saw how you ran, or how you ran, or how I was going to do it, you know, you know?"
Hooker, 35, has shared only stable clips of the event in the past few days, but plans to upload the entire long game this Friday.
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Hooker has been in a state of repair since his injury while dealing with a broken hand. He recently underwent a successful surgery and hopes to return by September or October.
Meanwhile, Hooker can watch the battle as much as possible in unparalleled circumstances. One-minute backyard battles are allowed only punches, and there are judges, military doctors and referees in every battle to keep everything organized. In all the games, Hook said there was only one real injury when someone hurt their arm. Limited rules include three-second knockdown rules and TKO losses if knocked down twice. Everyone received $1,000 in the match and the winner took home $50,000.
"I just put a video on Instagram and people called me," Hook said of finding a competitor. "I just looked. You took enough time and you knew how to filter everything."
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"It's just someone with an iPhone and a dream. I know everyone will think it's crazy. I know there will be some people who have problems with it, so I want to match (made) - I want it in my house so I can control it. I get some great people on the plate."
For Hook, controlling the celebration was a big part of the evening. It’s easy to get problematic attention when it looks like a group of friends thrown in the backyard, and some do.
Initially, Hook didn’t think much about the concept of continuing multiple iterations, but the secondary complaints he has received since then are just as fuel for continuing rather than stopping.
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"Stop me? I think you're now-you've challenged me now," Hook said of the critics. "I'm leaving it. Is anyone trying to stop me? Now I have to do that. Now I'm not bound and forced to pursue it.
Once everyone is looking at it for a full 45 minutes and only sees the respect of all the fighter jets that each other shows, you will find that in the end there are only a few guys wearing gloves in the backyard. When did you make an illegal fist with your partner? Since when did you commit a crime? When is that? At the time, it was one of a experienced struggle if they had some training in the fight. Things to do. ”