Tonight, Feb. 22, UFC on ESPN + 26 is coming to you live from Auckland, New Zealand’s Spark Arena.
In the main event, Paul Felder (17-4 MMA, 9-4 UFC) will take on hometown favorite, Dan Hooker (19-8 MMA, 9-4 UFC) in a lightweight showdown.
Round-by-round
Round 1: The round starts off with Felder pressuring Hooker against the fence. Hooker is landing the majority of the shots despite him moving backwards and circling around the octagon. Felder can’t seem to get anything going early as he chases Hooker. Felder lands a nice bodykick. The two get into an exchange and Felder lands a hard check left hook, but Hooker just absorbed it. Felder knocks Hooker to the ground with a low calf kick, the two immediately clinch as Hooker stands back up.
10-9 Hooker but it could have easily gone to Felder too for his forward pressure and shots landed.
Round 2: Felder continues to circle to his right, avoiding Felder’s power hand. Felder is missing a lot of his shots while Hooker continues to counter, just touching Felder with punches and kicks. Felder lands three leg kicks in a row towards the end of the round. Felder is starting to open up with his strikes and is starting to land more frequently.
10-9 Felder.
Round 3: Felder is starting to get in the groove now. He is pressuring and countering Hooker more frequently with a higher success rate. The two fighters are exchanging shots, with neither one really getting the clear advantage over the other. Felder has done good body work to this point and continures to land to the body with kicks and punches.
10-9 Felder but it was a very close round.
Round 4: Felder lands a hard calf kick and inside low kick early. Felder lands a hard right while eating a calf kick. Hooker lands a one-two. One minute into the fourth round, the two are dead even in strikes landed. Hooker is beginning to pressure after getting off to a slow start to the round. Felder lands a hard shot on Hooker, clearly hurting his opponent. Hooker shoots for the first takedown of the fight but he doesn’t get it. Hooker has Felder pressed against the cage but doesn’t do much with it. The two break and Felder lands another hard one-two. Felder is landing frequently with power. Hooker seems to be a little more fatigued. Hooker shoots for another takedown against the cage but can’t do anything with it.
10-9 Felder
Round 5: Felder continues with the forward pressure while Hooker is on his bicycle, moving all around the octagon. Felder lands a hard right hand. Hooker cant get started in this round as Felder is landing hard shots, frequently on the hometown favorite. Hooker shoots for a takedown again and misses. The two get clinched up against the fence. Hooker lands some shots as they break the clinch. Felder is clearly the fresher fighter. Hooker secures a takedown with one minute to spair in the round. Hooker is just looking to hold the position until the end of the round. The fight ends with Hooker pressuring Felder against the cage.
10-9 Felder.
The fight is going to the judges scorecards.
Result: 48-47 Felder, 48-47 Hooker, 48-47 Hooker.
Dan Hooker wins by split-decision.
