‘Bro, what?’ – Dan Hooker reveals why Ilia Topuria refused Alexander Volkanovski fight at UFC 313
Ilia Topuria refusing to fight, citing his need for six months to make weight, Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 313 left Dan Hooker bewildered.
The UFC revealed over the weekend that Hooker would lock horns with Justin Gaethje in a potential Fight of the Year candidate at UFC 313.
Gaethje hasn’t fought in the UFC since he was knocked out by Max Holloway at UFC 300 in April 2024.
Hooker, meanwhile, hasn't lost in the promotion since he was stopped by Arnold Allen at UFC London in March 2022.
The pair will meet on March 9 in a five-round co-main event at UFC 313, which will take place in Las Vegas and is headlined by Alex Pereira vs Magomed Ankalaev.
"They wanted to put Volk and Ilia on the [UFC 313] card as well," Hooker said in an interview with
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"But Ilia said he needs six months to make weight or something. I'm like: 'Bro, what?'
"He needs to eat a salad every now and then or something!";
Before Dana White's promotion announced the fight during UFC 311 - their first pay-per-view card of 2025 - MMA fans had sparked rumours over the potential headline act.
One of the names that regularly popped up was that of UFC featherweight champion Topuria.
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The 28-year-old Georgian Spaniard is undefeated in the UFC and won gold in the promotion after knocking out Volkanovski at UFC 298 in February last year.
He went on to defend the belt eight months later by handing MMA veteran Holloway, 33, the first knockout defeat of his career at UFC 308.
Topuria expressed his desire to move up a division and fight lightweight champion Islam Makhachev following UFC 311.
Makhachev was scheduled to defend his lightweight title against Arman Tsarukyan, but the challenger withdrew from the bout 24 hours before due to a back injury.
Renato Moicano, who was already set to fight on the main card, then stepped up to replace the injured Tsarukyan, but suffered a first-round submission defeat.
"Islam, if you want to, I can finish you," 'El Matador' said on X.
"If you want to, I can knock you out. I'll make it look easy. See you soon."
There have been talks of a move up to the welterweight division for Makhachev, who became the most decorated UFC lightweight of all time after his fourth defence of the title at UFC 311.
However, the 33-year-old's future remains unclear, and should he stay at lightweight a mouthwatering bout with Topuria could be on the cards.
With Hooker revealing that the UFC attempted to have Topuria vs Volkanovski 2 in March, it is clear a rematch between the pair is the more likely scenario.
UFC 313 takes place on Sunday, March 9 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Pereira defends his light heavyweight title for the fourth time against Ankalaev, while Gaethje or Hooker could set up another lightweight title shot with victory.
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Hooker is expecting his second child just four weeks after his bout at UFC 313.
"You cant put your life on hold...you roll with the punches, man," he added, referring to his upcoming fight.