In the aftermath of Alexander Volkanovski’s defeat at the hands of Islam Makhachev in a lightweight bout, Dan Hooker suggested that Islam had used intravenous (IV) therapy to rehydrate himself prior to the fight.
At the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia, UFC 284 took place, and the event’s main attraction was a tense and action-packed bout inside the octagon between Islam Makhachev and Alexander Volkanovski. Makhachev was able to successfully defend his lightweight title by receiving scores of 48-47 on two judges’ scorecards and 49-46 on the third judge’s scorecard.
The picture on the left is going viral after Dan Hooker claims Islam used an IV. The picture on the left was taken before the weigh in… the picture on the right clearly shows no IV mark/bruising and was taken during the fight. Come on folks#UFC284 pic.twitter.com/GlTviQCEcI
— Olin aka MMAnomaly👊 (@MMAnomaly) February 13, 2023
After Volkanovski’s loss, his teammate Dan Hooker made an accusation against Islam, suggesting that the Dagestani fighter may have taken help from a nurse to get him to reach his ideal weight in time for the fight. Dan claims that Islam used intravenous (IV) therapy to rehydrate himself the night before the battle, dropping his weight from about 165 to 155 for the fight, despite having been overweight by about 15 pounds.
“Dumb c**t thinks he can fly to Australia hire a nurse to give him an I.V and we won’t find out. Cheating dog.” said Dan in a statement.
Makhachev owns Dan Hooker. The guy woke up on his birthday so pissed because Islam beat his team mate 😟 pic.twitter.com/z4voDLP4nt
— Hamza 🙂 (@winfrey99) February 13, 2023
The use of intravenous medication is prohibited for competitors in the UFC in accordance with the requirements of the testing agency, the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA).
In light of this, Islam’s team had no choice but to immediately respond in the wake of such a startling allegation. Rizan Magomedov, a member of the Dagestani fighter’s team, gave an interview with MMAJunkie to discuss the matter.
Islam Makhachev responds to Dan Hooker's baseless cheating accusations .. pic.twitter.com/VUmwzIGULR
— Pablo_Escobar (@JM97_79) February 15, 2023
Magomedov debunked the assertion made by Dan by stating that the entire thing was complete BS. Dan is a loser in his eyes, and he is only angry and seeking attention because he has nothing more to offer.
“Mandatory blood test by AUS commission, Wednesday morning right before media and photo shoot. Ask the hooker to find the nurse with commission, she can confirm.” Magomedov further added.
Dan Hooker and Islam Makhachev actually fought in the octagon once, in 2021, with Dan coming out on the losing end.
