By: Sean Crose
“I want the WBC title,” says WBO superlightweight champion Maurice “Mo” Hooker, who has has recently decided to extend his contract (which is co-promotional) with Matchroom Boxing and Roc Nation Sports. “Everyone come to DAZN! Anybody – come to DAZN. Jack Catterall came all the way over here to America to watch me fight. Just wait young grasshopper, you will get your turn.”
Hooker openly admits he is not pleased with his most recent performance, which was against Mikkel Les Pierre at the Turning Stone Casino on March 9th. Although Hooker won by unanimous decision, the fighter clearly felt he could have done better work in the ring. “I give myself a C- in my performance,” he says. “I wasn’t good but I had to push. Look, you live and you learn. If you judge me from this fight, you better not get in the ring thinking the same thing because I am coming for you.”
March 9, 2019; Verona, NY, USA; WBO super lightweight champion Maurice Hooker and Mikkel LesPierre during their bout at the Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona, NY. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland/Matchroom Boxing USA
“Making weight was my fault,” he continues, referring to the trouble he had getting on point for the Les Pierrie battle. “I was in the room messing around. That was my fault. I’m learning as I go. I’m not done yet at Super-Lightweight, I want the massive fights.”
Although Hooker might be engaging in a fair bit of self-criticism at the moment, Matchroom honcho Eddie Hearn is still clearly pleased to still have the superlightweight in his stable. “I’m delighted to extend our agreement with Maurice and Roc Nation Sports,” he claims. “Maurice will return this summer, most likely in Dallas, giving him three World title defenses in just seven months.” Hearn’s fighters are beginning to stand out from others in the fight world due to their high rate of activity. The promoter states that Hooker will be no exception.
“We like to keep our world champions nice and busy and we want to push for unification match ups in 2019,” he says. “I believe Maurice is the best 140lber in the world right now and we look forward to helping him prove it on DAZN.” Indeed, being a part of Matchroom means Hooker will be showcasing his talents on DAZN, the streaming service which has lately gobbled up some of the top fighters in the business, such as Canelo Alvarez, and Gennady Golovkin.
“We’re excited to announce that we’ve been able to extend our co-promotional deal of Maurice Hooker with Matchroom Boxing USA,” claims Dino Duva of Roc Nation. “It’s a great partnership and we look forward to working with them not only with Maurice but on other fighters moving forward. Maurice is on his way to becoming one of the biggest stars on DAZN and this deal completely solidifies that.”