‘Thugs…’ Dan Hooker slammed for staging Israel Adesanya-endorsed boxing event with format that could ‘kill’

President of New Zealand boxing association calls out Dan Hooker’s wild ‘King of the Streets’ event

Hooker’s “King of the Streets” event is scheduled for Saturday in Auckland. It is advertised as a boxing tournament fought in MMA gloves, with a winner-takes-all $50,000 prize.

In social media videos, ‘The Hangman’ has explained the format, noting that the one-minute fights will have no weight limit.

One piece of promotional material featured an endorsement from Hooker’s teammate and fellow UFC star Israel Adesanya.

“Bring the family, bring the whanau, bring everyone, come watch, you’ll get knocked out or knock someone the f*** out,” Adesanya said.

Hooker has evidently had little struggle finding competitors, even claiming to have too many fighters lined up. But not everyone is sharing that level of enthusiasm.

In fact, the president of New Zealand’s Boxing Coaches Association slammed the planned event while speaking to Checkpoint. He even went as far as to suggest that somebody could be ‘killed’.

“The rules are a lot different [in boxing],” Billy Meehan said. “For starters we don’t do one-minute rounds. You’re saying to the guy in the corner get out and start smashing the other guy as best you can. Boxing is an art form; it’s a sport and this is straight-out thuggery.

“What you’ve got there is just thugs getting in there and going out and they’re just like absolutely smashing each other and we’re going to see somebody get seriously hurt, if not killed.

“It’s got to be sanctioned by a sanctioning body. They’re not even advertising where they’re holding this so the police obviously don’t even know.

“People who can hold boxing tournaments are actually listed on the Wrestling and Boxing Act. Dan Hooker’s not on the Wrestling and Boxing Act.”

Dan Hooker’s history of Octagon violence has made him a fan-favorite

When it comes to dissuading Hooker from an act of combat sports violence, the boxing authorities may have their work cut out.

‘The Hangman’ has become renowned for his willingness to brawl and lay his own body on the line inside the Octagon.

That was on full display at International Fight Week in 2023, where Hooker pushed through incredible adversity to emerge victorious from a barnburner against Jalin Turner.

Hooker’s badly broken arm in round one threatened to end his hopes of victory at UFC 290 in Las Vegas, but the always game New Zealander rallied to secure two of the three judges’ scorecards.

Similar violence would have likely been on display had Hooker’s scheduled clash with Justin Gaethje made it to the cage in March 2025.

A broken hand forced ‘The Hangman’ out of UFC 313 on late notice, and the fan-favorite remains on the sidelines recovering, with no return date on the calendar.