Ranked lightweight Dan Hooker will return at UFC’s September 25th pay-per-view event, facing Nasrat Haqparast in a three-round bout. Cole Shelton of BJPenn.com broke the story first.
The bout joins UFC 266, which is scheduled to take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
Hooker will be making his first appearance since being stopped by then-UFC newcomer and former Bellator champ Michael Chandler in early 2021.
Hooker had gone five rounds in his previous bout, losing a unanimous decision to former title challenger Dustin Poirier in 2020. The matchup was given the “Fight of the Night” award for the event afterward.
That bout snapped a three-fight winning streak for the City Kickboxing representative.
Haqparast has snatched undefeated records as of late, handing Alex Munoz and Rafa Garcia their first loss in recent appearances. He is currently on a two-fight winning streak and has won four of his last five appearances.
UFC Featherweight Champion Alexander Volkanovski is currently scheduled to face Brian Ortega in the main event of UFC 266. The card also includes a title fight with Valentina Shevchenko and a five-round fight with the returning Nick Diaz.
Here’s the updated lineup:
Bout 11: Alexander Volkanovski (22-1) vs. Brian Ortega (15-1) (UFC Featherweight Championship)
Bout 10: Valentina Shevchenko (21-3) vs. Lauren Murphy (15-4) (UFC Flyweight Championship)
Bout 9: Robbie Lawler (28-15) vs. Nick Diaz (26-9) (Welterweight)
Bout 8: Marlon Moraes (23-8-1) vs. Merab Dvalishvili (13-4) (Bantamweight)
Bout 7: Manon Fiorot (7-1) vs. Mayra Bueno Silva (7-1-1) (Flyweight)
Bout 6: Curtis Blaydes (14-3) vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruick (12-2) (Heavyweight)
Bout 5: Jessica Andrade (21-9) vs. Cynthia Calvillo (9-2-1) (Flyweight)
Bout 4: Uros Medic (7-0) vs. Jalin Turner (10-5) (Welterweight)
Bout 3: Shamil Abdurakhimov (20-5) vs. Chris Daukaus (11-3) (Heavyweight)
Bout 2: Nick Maximov (6-0) vs. Karl Roberson (9-4) (Middleweight)
Bout 1: Dan Hooker (20-10) vs. Nasrat Haqparast (13-3) (Lightweight)
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