Justin Gaethje books date with Dan Hooker at UFC 313 in Las Vegas
UFC 313 now has one of those matchups that gets the “That has Fight of the Night written all over it” attachment.
Justin Gaethje wanted a fight against Dan Hooker. He wanted it at UFC 313. If you have 13 post-fight bonuses in 13 UFC fights, you get what you ask for more often than not.
Gaethje (25-5 MMA, 8-5 UFC) and Hooker (24-12 MMA, 14-8 UFC) will throw down in a five-round co-main event at UFC 313 (pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+) on March 8 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The UFC announced the matchup during Saturday’s UFC 311 broadcast. The bout will play second billing to a light heavyweight title fight between champion Alex Pereira and Magomeda Ankalaev, which also was announced Saturday.
Gaethje, 36, hasn’t fought since a now-legendary knockout loss to Max Holloway at UFC 300 in April 2024.
New Zealand’s Hooker, 34, has been on the rebound with three straight wins after a rough patch of four losses in five fights. Most recently, he had a Fight of the Night upset win over Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 305 this past August.
With the addition, the UFC 313 lineup now includes:
- Champ Alex Pereira vs. Magomed Ankalaev – for light heavyweight title
- Justin Gaethje vs. Dan Hooker
- Amanda Lemos vs. Iasmin Lucindo
- Bruno Silva vs. Joshua Van
- Brunno Ferreira vs. Armen Petrosyan
- Chris Gutierrez vs. Jean Matsumoto
- Francis Marshall vs. Mairon Santos
- Carlos Leal vs. Alex Morono
- Ozzy Diaz vs. Djorden Santos
- Jhonata Diniz vs. Vitor Petrino
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 313.