Dan Hooker has broken his silence following his defeat at UFC Qatar.
Arman Tsarukyan forced the veteran to tap in the second round of their bout on Saturday night.
Afterwards, the Armenian accused Ilia Topuria of avoiding him as he made his case for a lightweight title shot.
Later that evening, Hooker was drinking a beer and reflecting on what had just happened. It was then that he had a realisation about where he stands in the title picture.
Dan Hooker addresses his defeat at UFC Qatar
Dan Hooker spoke candidly after the fight in a conversation with Oscar Willis from The Mac Life.
Setting a new career goal, ‘The Hangman’ confessed that winning a UFC belt is probably not on the cards for him.
He said: “Well, you’ve gotta face the cold, hard truths.
“You’re probably never going to get your hands on a title.
“But I’m going to hang around as long as I possibly can and ruin as many people’s hopes and dreams as I can.
“If I can’t have nice things, no one can.”
Where the lightweight title picture stands
Still awaiting a 2026 opponent for his lightweight title defence, Topuria currently holds the belt.
‘El Matador’ is expected to be back in action early next year, though there is still no clear challenger lined up.
Paddy Pimblett and Justin Gaethje have both been mentioned as possibilities, but neither has a strong case at the moment.
Tsarukyan had been the number one contender for quite some time.
He was set to face Islam Makhachev at UFC 311, but withdrew just a day before the fight due to a back injury.
Dana White was frustrated by that decision and made it clear Tsarukyan would need to earn his way back into title contention.
Tsarukyan believes he will be ready if the UFC calls him up for a January date against Topuria, though it is still unclear whether his win over Hooker has healed any of those issues with White.
Speaking at the post-fight press conference in Qatar, he said: “Of course. I can rest one week, fly to the U.S., and stay there two months. It’s enough time to get ready.
“I didn’t get any injury, thank God. Hopefully, on Tuesday, they announce the fight – me fighting main event vs. Topuria, whether it’s going to be in Las Vegas or Los Angeles.
“I have to take that chance. I have plenty of time to get ready.”
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