Midnight Mania: Let It Break!

Welcome to Midnight Mania!

Safe to say, Dan Hooker’s decision to accept a short-notice bout vs. Islam Makhachev did not exactly pay off. Hooker’s gutsiness in accept the bout definitely earned him some extra respect from the fans, but once the cage doors actually locked, Makhachev pretty immediately had his way with the Kiwi.

Makhachev hardly absorbed a strike before landing a kimura, which ended the bout at 2:25 of the first frame. The hold was perfectly secured and about to do major damage to Hooker’s shoulder when “The Hangman” verbally submitted, but per Hooker himself, he cried uncle by accident! Hooker unintentionally yelled out “Ah f—k,” which the referee interpreted as a verbal submission.

“I thought I’d said it in my head,” Hooker explained (via MMA News). “To be honest I haven’t even gone back and watched the fight. He had my arm wrapped up and I said, I thought I said in my head, I said, ‘Ah fuck!’ [LAUGHS] I thought I said it in my head but obviously, I’ll have to go back and watch it, because obviously I said it out loud… That’s why, I though I’d said it in my head, so initially when the ref starts breaking it up I was like, ‘What? Let it break,’ you know what I mean?”

Well, that explains the confusion at the end of the match between Hooker and the referee.

Ultimately, Hooker is quite fortunate that the referee did not let his shoulder snap. Kimuras most often do severe damage to the rotator cuff, which is a lengthy and unpleasant recovery. Even if Hooker had somehow managed to endure the submission without tapping, was he really going to defeat Makhachev with a non-functioning arm?

Not likely. Instead, Hooker exited the contest relatively unscathed, and perhaps another short-notice Lightweight opportunity will open up and give him a chance to return to the win column.

Insomnia

MMA is coming to one of the most historic Muay Thai stadiums in the world.

History in the making!

Lumpini Stadium, known as one of the meccas of Muay Thai, will have MMA fights starting in 2022. Fairtex Fight Promotion will put on shows 2x a month. Opportunities arise. pic.twitter.com/MGvkUIE6fL

— John Hyon Ko (@JHKMMA) November 17, 2021

These body shots definitely still hurt through the padding.

Alexander Volkanovski is more than open to another showdown vs. Max Holloway and suggests that “Blessed” may not be.

UFC Vegas 43’s co-main event between Michael Chiesa and Sean Brady features a battle of tattoos.

Justin Gaethje vs. Makhachev has to happen at some point.

Speaking of Gaethje, someone put together a highlight showcasing the effects of the low kicks he took from Michael Chandler. Neither man was likely to walk straight for a week after that scrap!

A highly touted English prospect has joined the UFC roster: