UFC on ESPN 12: Poirier vs. Hooker Odds, Schedule, Predictions

Dustin Poirier and Dan Hooker headline another UFC offering from the APEX Facility in Las Vegas before the promotion heads off to Fight Island in Abu Dhabi in July. 

The lightweight showdown is definitely the crown jewel of the card. Poirier enters the bout as the No. 3 contender in the division, while Hooker just broke into the top five off his split decision win over The Irish Dragon Paul Felder. 

The winner will be sitting pretty in one of the most compelling divisions the promotion has to offer. The loser will fall way behind the eight-ball in a division where recent success is everything. 

Here's a look at the full card, odds and a look at some of the biggest fights of the night. 

Main Card (ESPN/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET)

• Dustin Poirier (-220; bet $220 to win $100) vs. Dan Hooker (+185; bet $100 to win $185)
• Mickey Gall (+260) vs. Mike Perry (-320)
• Maurice Greene (-230) vs. Gian Villante (+190)
• Brendan Allen (-310) vs. Kyle Daukaus (+255)
• Tanner Boser (-110) vs. Philipe Lins (-110)
• Julian Erosa (N/A) vs. Sean Woodson (N/A) – 150-pound catchweight

Prelims (ESPN/ESPN+ at 6 p.m. ET)

• Luis Pena (-240) vs. Khama Worthy (+200)
• Takashi Sato (N/A) vs. Jason Witt (N/A)
• Jinh Yu Frey (+155) vs. Kay Hansen (-175)
• Jordan Griffin (+100) vs. Youssef Zalal (-120)

Odds via Caesars Palace

Dustin Poirier vs. Dan Hooker

This card doesn't feature much in the way of high-stakes fights, or compelling ones for that matter, but there's no denying this is a great main event. 

Hooker is looking to finally break into the top tier of the lightweight division. He has looked sharp in wins over James Vick, Al Iaquinta and Felder since 2019, but Poirier is a different level of fighter than those three at this point. 

Poirier brings a well-rounded game to the table. He can push a pace, has wrestling to go with his powerful striking and, as demonstrated in his absolute war of a win over Max Holloway, he has a gas tank to go as long as he needs to. He even finished Justin Gaethje in the fourth round of their bout. 

Hooker is the rangier fighter at 6'0" with a 75-inch reach advantage, but that hasn't translated to safer fighting. While he does a good job of mixing in leg kicks and working off his jab at times, he still absorbs 4.67 strikes per minute while dishing out a virtually identical 4.76. 

Hookers take-one-to-give-one style here is a dangerous proposition. Poirier is excellent on the counter and has knockout power to go with it. Wins over Holloway and Gaethje makes it hard to believe that Hooker can simply drown him in volume. 

The Diamond is a favorite, and looking at the matchup, it seems he will come through on that status. Hooker has been impressive lately, but he still doesn't quite pose enough threats in the striking department to beat Poirier. 

Prediction: Poirier via third-round TKO

Mickey Gall vs. Mike Perry

Some men are simply born to be pioneers. 

One of those men is clearly Mike Perry, who will fight on Saturday night with just one person in his corner: his girlfriend, Latory Gonzalez.

Perry has made the highly unorthodox decision to forgo coaches in his preparation for the bout and will only have her in his corner on fight night. Her job, according to him? Sit back and enjoy the show. 

The decision comes after a string of frustrating performances for the 28-year-old. He's lost three of his last four fights, including a first-round knockout loss to Geoff Neal last time out. 

If there was ever a matchup to try this experiment against it would be Gall. The guy who started his UFC career with wins over CM Punk and Sage Northcutt to start 3-0 is now just 2-2 in his last four fights with a loss to what's left of Diego Sanchez. 

The fact these two are serving in the co-main event speaks to the relative lack of depth on the card, but this one should be fun. Despite Perry's recent struggles, he's a high-volume action fighter who is always dangerous on the feet. 

Gall has the ability to jump on a submission if he gets Perry to the ground, but Platinum's takedown defense is actually a strength. Gall will find it difficult to close the distance and get Perry down with consistency, which will likely be his downfall. 

Prediction: Perry via decision