When Arman Tsarukyan pulled out just days before UFC 311, people were quite confused with the situation and timing of it happening. Fellow lightweight fighter Dan Hooker was among the bunch who questioned ‘Akhalkalakets’s injury and even took a jibe at Tsarukyan’s family wealth, which Tsarukyan’s been very open about. “Daddy can’t buy you a backbone, can he?”, is what ‘The Hangman’ jokingly stated during an interview. That may not be wise because it seems like his words have to haunt him.

Dan Hooker had to do the same thing that Arman Tsarukyan did in January, i.e., pull out due to an injury, disappointing fans who were pumped for his clash against Justin Gaethje at UFC 313. While it was his back that gave Tsarukyan issues, Hooker seems to have problems with his hand. “I was just sparring last night. Just as I do, I was letting some hooks go… caught one of the boys on the top of the dome with my knuckle,” the 35-year-old told UFC on Sky.

Remembering what ‘The Hangman’ had to say about him last month, the Armenian star did not pass up this opportunity to take a jibe back at Dan Hooker, and while doing so, ‘Akhalkalakets’ declared that his Kiwi counterpart is a better talker than a fighter. “Karma doesn’t miss. Big mouth, glass hands – maybe just stick to talking instead of fighting,” Tsarukyan tweeted.

Meanwhile, the beef between Dan Hooker and Arman Tsarukyan didn’t take shape through the back-and-forth they recently. It started last year, when ‘The Hangman’ expressed interest in a fight against the Armenian star.

Dan Hooker once wanted to fight Arman Tsarukyan to get a title shot

Dan Hooker was on top of the world after UFC 305 as he defeated a game Mateusz Gamrot, who was slowly building a winning streak. His confidence made him shut his critics up and to do that was willing to take on Arman Tsarukyan, who’s the No.1 contender. The surprising bit was that ‘The Hangman’ even offered to fight Tsarukyan for “free,” claiming that a win guaranteed him a fight for the championship.

“I was there, talking to Hunter. He was like, ‘Who do you want next?’. I said I want to smash Arman’s (Tsarukyan) face in. I was like I will smash Arman for free. He is still just too much stuck in the past. I just think he is a whinger. Besides that, I feel like he is the toughest next fight to get a title shot,” Dan Hooker told Submission Radio.

Dan Hooker isn’t one to shy away from a verbal confrontation, and hence, it remains to be seen how he reacts to Arman Tsarukyan’s jibe. On the other hand, Dana White has made it clear that the no.1 contender won’t be getting an immediate title shot on return, so could he end up fighting Hooker on his way back to the top? Let us know what you think in the comments down below.