Jeff Smith 
@adminA rising star in the featherweight division Chase Hooper has been added to the card for UFC 263 on June 12. With the line-up pretty much set the event still doesn’t have a location or venue, it has been hinted that it will be in Arizona.
Hooper has a pretty impressive overall record of 10-1-1. That one loss came in the UFC in his second fight versus Alex Caceres, in which Hooper was heavily favored, by way of unanimous decision. It looked like he was going to lose his second fight in a row when he pulled out a spectacular victory over Peter Barrett at UFC 256 in December.
Being behind on the judges score cards, and, for the most part, being pummeled by Barrett throughout the match, he managed to surprise the veteran, and everyone else, with a heel hook submission. The move just might get him the “Come back of the Year” honors. The twenty-one year old certainly has been showing he can handle himself in the octagon.
Steven Peterson has a decent pro record with twice as many wins as losses (18-9) but the UFC has not been that kind to him. Since playing with the big boys he has accumulated a record of 3 losses and 2 wins.
Peterson’s last outing did stop his 2 fight losing skid when he finished off Martin Bravo with a spinning back fist in the second round at UFC Fight Night 159 in 2019. It was a spectacular shot and earned him the “Performance of the Night” bonus.
Hooper impressed UFC Dana White to date, and even with a loss “The Dream’s” (formerly The Teenage Dream) position in the UFC is pretty secure. Proving his worth in various MMA leagues has earned him a lot of respect in the UFC. And when you consider he started his professional career at only eight-teen years old, his 10 wins versus a single loss is quite amazing.
Peterson, however, is not in the same boat, with his losing record in the UFC and lackluster showings (last fight notwithstanding) “Ocho” really needs to show the company something or risk losing his contract.
It’s been a year and a half since “Ocho” has stepped into the octagon, having to withdraw from his last two scheduled matches. We will have to see if the long layoff has hampered him.
The line on this fight has not been released yet, but looking at the two fighters’ trajectories you would have to figure Hooper will be favored by quite a bit. Hooper’s odds to win have gotten stronger in his short time in the UFC. He has been heavily favored in his last two bouts.
Peterson has been the underdog or at best even odds to win his matches. But his last win was as the underdog at two-to-one and he pulled it off. So taking a chance on the “old man” in this one might not be a bad bet.
