Dan Hooker gets honest about why he prefers fighting Arman Tsarukyan over Justin Gaethje 

Dan Hooker recently shared his honest thoughts on why he prefers fighting Arman Tsarukyan over Justin Gaethje. Hooker is set to face Tsarukyan in a pivotal lightweight clash at UFC Qatar later this month.

While Hooker was booked for a fight against Gaethje at UFC 313 in March, the bout fell through after 'The Hangman' was forced to withdraw due to a hand injury. Hooker was later booked against Tsarukyan, who was scheduled for a title fight against Islam Makhachev at UFC 311 in January but was forced to pull out due to injury. He was replaced by Renato Moicano, who lost via first-round submission.

In a recent interview with Sky Sports New Zealand, Hooker explained that he saw Tsarukyan as his ticket to a potential title shot. He said:

"Justin Gaethje is not that guy, Justin Gaethje doesn't get me to that guy, Justin Gaethje just gets me a headache. Arman Tsarukyan is the path to the title. That's the path to being the champ. That's the path to being the best guy."

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Hooker added:

"This fight excites me because they feel like he's a lot better than I am. That's why this fight excites me so much. It's like anything good that I do. He's going to start to look like more of an idiot. He was supposed to be this super freak athlete, title contender, the guy to beat Ilia Topuria. This is his story, and now he's losing to Dan Hooker, the bloke from New Zealand who's lost a third of his fights." [H/t: Yahoo Sports]

Watch the full interview below:

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When Dan Hooker went ballistic on Arman Tsarukyan after their UFC Qatar fight was confirmed

It's no secret that Dan Hooker and Arman Tsarukyan have no love for each other and have been trading shots online for a while. After their fight at UFC Qatar was officially announced by Dana White last month, Hooker went on a rant against Tsarukyan and explained his dislike for the Georgian-born fighter.

In an interview with Submission Radio, Hooker sounded off on his next opponent and said:

"I think there is a lot of animosity there. I don't like the way. I don't like his face. I don't like that his face is attached to his body, and I would love to separate the two. I don't like the bloke. I don't know anything about him, but I hate everything he stands for. I can't wait to elbow him in the nose. It doesn't hurt, though, having that as a motivation to get in. If he comes within arm's range to me, I'm going to hit him."

Edited by Nishant Zende.