"No one wants to watch that fight again, so he's a long way off getting another title shot. For him to get another title shot he's going to have to put a four- or five-fight win streak together.
"I just think the fight makes sense and I'd offer it to him, you know? I think: who is he going to fight? How does he get himself back on track? I think I'm one of the best names for him."
Hooker's win over Iaquinta in Melbourne earlier this month saw him rise from 15th to seventh in the lightweight rankings, improving his record in the division to 6-1. The 29-year-old Kiwi dominated his American counterpart over three rounds, before calling for both a fight against Poirier and another UFC show in New Zealand.
Poirier quickly responded, saying he wasn't interested in fighting Hooker. The Kiwi countered by offering to donate half his show fee to Poirier's charity if he agreed to the fight, and confirmed his wife, Isabella, was "all good" with him making that offer.
"At the end of the day it goes to charity anyway, it's for a good cause. (You do) whatever you have to do to sweeten the pot; couldn't get him to bite, though. I was just going fishing."
Now ranked inside the top 10 in the UFC's deepest division, Hooker has earned the right to fight in a five-round main event, and was happy to move onto the next guy if Poirier remained uninterested.
For a headline fight, a bout against Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone (No5) might even appeal more to the casual fans than Poirier due to Cerrone's history of explosive fights, while Paul Felder (No6) and Justin Gaethje (No4) would also shape up to be fan-friendly fights.
In the meantime, Hooker is actively advocating for the UFC to return to Kiwi shores so he could headline a card at home. While Auckland is the most logical and likely location to host another UFC bout, Hooker floated the idea of taking a show to Dunedin's Forsyth Barr Stadium.
Dana White Bring the UFC back to New Zealand! We can host the event at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin. Covered stadium that holds 36,000. Enough support and we can make this happen! 👊
#ufcsouthisland
Posted by Dan "Hangman" Hooker on Sunday, October 13, 2019
"The south hasn't had a card down there, so I'm just putting the feelers out and seeing if there's interest there. There's been a bit of interest online from New Zealand so we'll see how it goes.
"Even if it doesn't happen this time, it sets it up for the future; it puts the idea in people's heads that Auckland is not the only place that can host a UFC fight in New Zealand."
