Hot off the heels of his close victory over Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 284, Islam Makhachev has been accused of cheating by a former opponent. Lightweight contender Dan Hooker lit up social media by accusing the lightweight champion of using an illegal IV drip to gain an added advantage for the fight.
Makhachev went into the fight with a pronounced size advantage already, but Volkanovski gave him all he could handle in their five-round tilt.
Hooker might not be all sour grapes. The “Hangman” alleges that Makhachev brought in a nurse after the official weigh-in to perform the rehydration. Such practice are illegal under USADA rules, resulting in a two year penalty. While adamant that the champion is a cheat, and that he has proof to support his claims, Hooker has not come forward with anything else besides his gripe.
It hasn’t taken long for the allegations to run its course, drawing a response from Makhachev’s team below:
“We all know this is completely B.S. The guy is a loser. He’s salty and just looking for attention, and that’s it.”
Rizvan Magomedov, manager of Islam Makhachev
Hooker’s allegations addressed by USADA
This move seems a bit out of character for Hooker. While he did suffer a submission loss to Makhachev back at UFC 267, he had no qualms with the nature of his loss back then. As Hooker fights to remain relevant in the deep lightweight waters, many come out to denounce his classless act.
USADA responded in no time to Hooker’s claims, stating they intend to investigate:
It is worth mentioning that Makhachev has always been a clean fighter, never failing any USADA protocols throughout his MMA career,
With his proposed fight with Jalin Turner at UFC 285 falling apart due to Hooker suffering a hand injury, he’ll have plenty of time to either perpetuate the rumor or come forward with the proof he claims he has.
