On Saturday, June 27, we got another set of epic weekend fights staged by the UFC at their facility in Las Vegas. The main card for the night was Dustin Poirer vs. Dan Hooker.

Both fighters seemed evenly matched, pressing each other hard, but at the end, Poirer came out victorious, but not without a few scars, even though Hooker looked badly beaten up. One thing no one can deny is that Poirier, who had been away for nine months, fought hard to land this win.

The first round showed just how ready and eager the two fighters were. Punches were exchanged and jabs were met with kicks. One could see how both fighters were trying hard to prove who the better man was. The first round set the tone for what would later be dubbed as the “best fight of the year” and with the way those two started, it would be hard harr to doubt that.

The second round started almost on the same tempo, but this time Poirier was able to show us why he was a former interim champion. Hooker was the first to throw shots as the round began, but Poirier quickly put an end to that by landing a series of rapid punches. Hooker, however, was refused to be cowered and still landed a few jabs of his. Even when Poirier delivered some vicious blows, Hooker surprisingly took it well and used it as fuel to deal Poirier back, sending some shots to his chin before the round ended.

By the time the third round started, Poirier was determined to fight until the very end as he began to dominate the ring. Hooker was already showing signs of exhaustion, but this did not deter Poirier who kept keeping Hooker in check with a few punches.

At a point, Poirier has Hooker in a guillotine choke as the other man tried to go for a takedown. The two men kept of throwing jabs, although Poirier landed more powerful ones, Hooker took it all without a fuss.

The scuffle continued into the fourth round where Hooker’s main tactic revolves around takedowns, but Poirier is always quick to get back up and deal with his opponent, often using the guillotine choke. But it becomes obvious with every passing minute that Poirier was fighting better.

The final round started with both men looking bloody. Poirer had suffered a few cuts already and Hooker was looking very much beat up. The pace has reduced by now, but they still managed to throw hard hits. But the damage had already been done and Poirier had proven himself again.

The fight came to an end and the judges’ scorecards read 48-47, 48-47, and 48-46, in the favour of Poirier, who looked very exhausted after the fight. Speaking briefly after the fight, he said, “It was a tough one, man. Dan came to fight, he’s a tough guy, he’s on the rise.”

Hooker, who was unavailable after the match, posted a video message on his Instagram where he stated that he had a few stitches and he was all good. He captioned the video with “Credit to Poirier better man on the night, no regrets, no excuses. Minor setbacks ain’t a major for me.”

Both fighters got a $50,000 bonus each for “Fight of the Night”.

Written by: Leon Osamor