Despite his own struggles to make it to fight week, Dan Hooker can’t complain after seeing what Nasrat Haqparast has endured.
Haqparast’s mother recently died, but despite the tragic news, he has chosen to push through with his fight against Hooker on Saturday at UFC 266. Hooker (20-10 MMA, 10-6 UFC) only obtained his U.S. visa on Monday and is expected to arrive in Las Vegas on Thursday night, just hours before having to step on the scale for weigh-ins.
Hooker’s situation is far from ideal, but after seeing what Haqparast (13-3 MMA, 5-2 UFC) has gone through, withdrawing was not an option for Hooker.
“If I’m comparing my circumstances to Nasrat’s circumstances, you can’t even compare the two,” Hooker told Submission Radio. “My situation pales in comparison to what Nasrat’s going through. That’s something I’ve never experienced. My mother’s still happy and healthy, so that’s not a feeling that I can even pretend to experience. Like, what he’s going through to show up to this fight is a thousand times worse than anything I could possibly be going through.
“So, for me to then withdraw from the fight after he’s made this commitment to the fight, that would be terrible, and that really wouldn’t sit right with me if I couldn’t make the fight and yet he’s still making this sacrifice. Yeah, that’s why I just sent my condolences to him, and I still do, because he is the one pushing through all the tough stuff, he’s the one persevering in this fight. Comparing my situation is just silliness.”
However, the fight remains in jeopardy as Haqparast is also dealing with visa issues. A day after Hooker resolved his problem, Haqparast took to Twitter to seek help from the U.S. consulate in Frankfurt, Germany, urging them to hurry up the process and approve his visa.
The lockdown in New Zealand has made it difficult for Hooker to train, but even though it’s been a tumultuous road to the fight, “The Hangman” has never expressed any concern over his preparation.
“It was never in doubt in the whole thing,” Hooker said. “At no time since I’ve had this fight has there been any doubt, like a shred of doubt on my end that I wasn’t gonna be prepared or I wasn’t gonna be ready.”
He continued “I feel prepared. That’s why I’m pursuing this fight so hard. Like, that’s why I’m fighting to get to this fight, is genuinely because I want to showcase the improvements I’ve made or showcase my ability. I feel like previously, or in the past, I would have done the exact same thing. I would have just gone out of my way, but it would have just been more like, I’ll fight anyone and go out of my way to just prove I’m a fighter. But I feel like the mentality shifted, and I’m going out of my way this time, purely because I feel like I’m the best, and I feel like I’m in a great place. So, I feel like I need to showcase that.
“I feel like I need to get out there and showcase this to the world. So, I feel mentally and physically in great shape and prepared. Like, these pandemic times have been difficult for the fighters down here in New Zealand and Australia, but you just gotta make it work. Sitting on your arse and complaining and b*tching and moaning about all of these restrictions will get you absolutely nowhere. You can’t go to a bank and pay your mortgage with complaints. It takes cold, hard cash. And the only way a fighter makes money is from getting out there and fighting. So, that’s what I’m doing.”
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