Chase Hooper hopes win ends streak of veteran matchups

MIAMI – Chase Hooper has no problem beating up the elder statesmen of the UFC, but perhaps it’s time to move on.

In his most recent outing, Hooper (15-3-1 MMA, 7-3 UFC) submitted Clay Guida and on Saturday will try to do the same to Jim Miller (38-18 MMA, 27-17 UFC) at UFC 314 from Kaseya Center (pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+).

Hooper says he has never set out to be the “prospect killer,” despite what some may think.

“Going into this fight, a lot of people were like, ‘Oh, you called out Jim Miller,’” Hooper told MMA Junkie and other reporters Wednesday at UFC 314 media day. “Somebody suggested it and I was like, ‘Yeah, I wouldn’t mind that fight.’ That turned into a callout. I think that makes sense. It’s a good step up, especially from the Clay fight. He’s another veteran guy and he’s got, what, 46 UFC fights? Almost 20 more UFC fights than I have years on this planet.

“I fought a lot of veterans now at this point. Caceres was my second fight, which is crazy to think about now. Yeah, I’m pretty happy with the matchup. I’m happy to fight another left-handed guy, like a true southpaw. I think that’ll be fun. He’s a guy that’s willing to engage in the grappling and a guy that’s not going to really have any respect for any of the areas I’ll try to take the fight to. I think that opens up a lot of opportunity when a guy is thinking more about the offense than the defense.”

Once viewed by many as almost a comically young fighter taking on grown men inside the UFC, Hooper has evolved after a bumpy promotional start. Seemingly turning a corner in early 2023, Hooper has now won three straight fights.

While fighting the most experienced aging fighters on the roster is fun and all, he hopes a win over Miller on Saturday aligns him more with a fighter on a similar trajectory to his own.

“It’s one of those things that kind of sucks about the sport,” Hooper said. “You can’t have too much reverence for people in their careers, especially if you’re in the same weight class. You just don’t know who you are going to fight and when. Obviously, I have a lot of respect for Jim and a lot of respect for Clay and all these veterans that I’ve fought. But, at the end of the day, it’s them or me. I hopefully will get another prospect on the up-and-come after this, another guy on a winning streak. But for now, we’ll take what we can get and I’m happy with the matchup.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 314.