Dan Hooker compares Paddy Pimblett to a ‘baby giraffe’ in harsh review of UFC 324 performance

UFC fan favorite Dan Hooker added another chapter to his feud with Paddy Pimblett after watching Pimblett’s performance at UFC 324.

For the first time in his UFC career, lightweight star Paddy Pimblett left the Octagon without a victory as he was outpointed by Justin Gaethje in their UFC 324 title fight.

Gaethje put on a largely dominant performance against Pimblett last Saturday to win the interim UFC lightweight title. After dropping Pimblett early, Gaethje was able to pour on the pressure as the fight played out, leaving Pimblett in a bloody mess.

Many of Pimblett’s detractors, including lightweight contender Dan Hooker, are taking advantage of Pimblett’s performance at UFC 324. Top contender Arman Tsarukyan went on a wild rant about Pimblett immediately after the fight on social media.

But Pimblett has gone back-and-forth with Hooker, in particular, in recent weeks, and the latter didn’t let him off the hook.

Dan Hooker questions Paddy Pimblett’s longevity after UFC 324 loss to Justin Gaethje

In a recent interview on The Ariel Helwani Show, Hooker reacted to Pimblett’s showing at UFC 324, and didn’t hold back.

“It was dog—, as usual. Paddy looks like a baby giraffe, f—– elbows flying, jumping in the air. He looks r——- to me when he fights,” Hooker said of Pimblett.

“That’s not the hard part. The hard part isn’t getting to [fight] Justin Gaethje, getting a fight with Justin Gaethje or Dan Hooker, Dustin Poirier. Getting there is the hard part. He obviously has one of these special UFC contracts when you pick your f—– opponents and s— like that. Managed very well and he’s been shortcut over a lot of other fighters very well. But now he’s in the deep end…there are no more easy fights. He’s going to learn that, the kid’s never had a war in his life.

“It’s a lesson I’ve learned the hard way,” Hooker said. “For the rest of his career, there’s no fights where you just go out there, skate by and outclass them. For the rest of your days…he’s going to go back home, sit in his bed for the next month recovering. Going to have to get himself back up and go out there and do the exact same thing next time.”

Hooker and Pimblett’s feud has turned personal in recent weeks, leading to numerous threats from both lightweights. Tensions rose to a new level after Hooker invoked Pimblett’s deceased friend into trash talk.

Hooker returns to the Octagon this Saturday at Benoit Saint-Denis at UFC 325. If he isn’t victorious this weekend, you can safely expect Pimblett to share his thoughts colorfully.