New Zealand star Dan Hooker has slammed Paulo Costa for missing the weight limit multiple times ahead of his clash at the UFC Apex against Marvin Vettori on Saturday night.
The City Kickboxing star, 31, accused Costa, 30, of essentially sticking two fingers up to the fans, saying that 'he didn't earn the right to do that'.
'Borrachinha' is the latest star who was found to be several pounds heavier than the agreed-upon weight the week before a fight, following in the footsteps of Nick Diaz and Aspen Ladd.
Diaz, 38, agreed to fight Robbie Lawler at UFC 266, but the week before the fight, Diaz called for it to be moved up 15 pounds to middleweight.
However, unlike Diaz, Hooker argues the Brazilian has not earned the right to do as he pleases, as he feels he was trying to cheat the system.
Hooker told Denis Shkuratov via Submission Radio: “What Costa did, he didn’t earn the right to do that.
“It was a funny situation because it was only what, a couple of weeks ago that we let Nick Diaz roll up and do it.
"But Paulo Costa hadn’t done for the sport what Nick Diaz had done, but obviously same result, he got the weight class changed entirely.
"So I don’t know, it’s kind of funny, like a bit of a power play. But it’s not for me, it’s not like the Anzac culture of the sport."
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Hooker, who is preparing for his fight with Islam Makhachev, is also adamant that Costa wouldn't have been allowed to get away with it if the event had been held in his home country of New Zealand or neighbouring country Australia.
He added: “That would never happen, something like that in New Zealand or Australia.
"I feel like if you just showed up to a local kickboxing show with your fighter 10 kilos [approx. 22 pounds] overweight and you were like, ‘What are you gonna do about it?’ I feel like you’d get beaten up in the car park.
"It’s just a sign of respect. That’s all it is. It’s a matter of respect. I show up on weight as a respect for my opponent, as a respect for my gym, as a respect for representing who I represent.
"It’s a sign of respect to the fans, it’s a sign of respect to the promotion. It’s absolutely everything. So it absolutely is what it is. Him coming out like that is just a massive ‘F you’ to the fans, ‘F you’ to the UFC, ‘F you’ to his opponent.”
Meanwhile, Hooker is making a quick turnaround after his recent victory over Nasrat Haqparast at the end of September.
The former King in the Ring champion's two defeats in his last five fights have come against Americans Michael Chandler and Dustin Poirier.
“I don’t know, I’m just doing me,” he added.
“I’m not trying to put on a show, I’m not trying - people would be able to see right through it. Islam could come out and call the bluff and say, ‘Look guy, he approached the UFC with five rounds and he turned it down.’
"They know that that’s not gonna happen. They know that that’s not me. It’s just who I am. It’s just the way that I approach the sport. It’s the way that I’ve always approached the sport. It’s not difficult at all.
“We’ll see what happens after this as well. Go out there and get the job done. There are two massive lightweight fights before the end of the year.
"Knock on wood, you don’t want something to go wrong, but I’ll put my hand up. That’s all me. I’ll get back in there. As long as I can be medically cleared by a state commission to fight, I will fight.”
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