Dan Hooker calls out Beneil Dariush to fight under potential Conor McGregor-headlined card

Dan Hooker wants lightweight Beneil Dariush on the summer card of International Fight Week, the estimated return point of Conor McGregor.

Dan Hooker calls out Beneil Dariush to fight under potential Conor McGregor-headlined card

Dan Hooker makes yet another callout to Beneil Dariush (Source: IMAGO/Instagram)

Dan Hooker is happy to take on challenges at the lightweight weight class, even if it is Beneil Dariush. Hooker is on an eventful course; first on a two-win streak, and then an arm injury. Meanwhile, Dariush is coming off a loss to Arman Tsarukyan in the UFC on ESPN 52 headliner. Dariush is contrarily on a 2-loss streak. Before Tsarukyan, he lost against Charles Oliveira. Now these two foes take on each other on the historic April 13 card at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

This is seeing labels of the #1 contender fight for the lightweight gold. In the aftermath of his recent loss at the UFC on ESPN 52 headliner, Dariush felt interested in offering Conor McGregor a welcoming challenge, back to UFC. However, Dan Hooker yet again wants ‘Benny’ for a face-off on such a card. He said on X – 

@beneildariushSmash your face International fight week, pi*s or get off the pot.
Dan Hooker vis his X account (@danthehangman)
YouTube video

Speaking to ESPN MMA’s Marc Raimondi, McGregor yet again nudged his interest to return during International Fight Week. He reported on getting confirmation that all cylinders are firing on such a discourse. He is adamant about facing TUF: 31-season coach and expectant rival Michael Chandler in June. Chandler himself told Michael Babcock on the “TMZ Sports” TV show that it’s official for summer.

FS Video

In an interview on ENGAGE’s YouTube channel, Hooker again expressed interest in the veteran Dariush. Dan Hooker is currently reveling in full glory and reeling from surgery. He told Sky Sports NZ he was expected to be cleared in March.

Dan Hooker vs. Beneil Dariush: Through the cracks

Dan Hooker vs. Jalin Turner was to be the case for UFC 285. But, Hooker incurred an arm injury. Which consequently postponed the matter. Come UFC 290, eventually, Hooker came out on top, via a split decision win. However, “Hangman” had to pull out of his pairing with Bobby Green for the UFC Austin card due to breaking his arm this past November, which thus required surgery.

Dan Hooker vs. Beneil Dariush in the making, gets another nudge from the challenger
Dan Hooker vs. Beneil Dariush in the making, gets another nudge from the challenger (Souce: Twitter/UFC.go.com)

Hooker now wants to return at UFC 303 on June 29. His intended opponent, Dariush was on the coattails of 8 wins. However, the lightweight staple last suffered a first-round knockout to Tsarukyan. This was in the UFC on ESPN 52 main event. He has had success against big names, like Tony Ferguson, Thiago Moises, Drew Dober, and others.

Dariush, at a 22-6-1 MMA, 16-6-1 UFC standstill is contemplating how and when to move forward. He told Submission Radio that the last time he faced back-to-back losses was almost 4 years ago. While unsure of his fighting future, he wants to hedge on big motivations to drive him back in. It only remains to be seen if a rivalry and callouts by Hooker persuade him back to the octagon.

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