Imago
Credits: IMAGO
Imago
Credits: IMAGO
“Cringy.” “Lame.”—that’s what fans called Josh Hokit’s pre-fight antics at UFC 327. However, that perception has changed since he smothered Curtis Blaydes with a stellar performance. Among them was Dustin Poirier, who not only praised the Californian but also compared him to Conor McGregor.
Watch What’s Trending Now!
“Listen, when stars start to align, you’ve seen it in Conor… You talk the talk and walk the walk… you’ve seen ‘Suga’ Sean, you’ve seen Chael Sonnen. We’ve seen that time and time again when guys talk the talk and walk the walk. He did it this week,” the retired UFC star recently said of Hokit on the About Last Fight podcast.
“He talked a big game, and he went out there and put on one of the best heavyweight fights we’ve seen and got his hands raised. Good things happen. You become a star,” ‘The Diamond’ added.
Top Stories
Conor McGregor is regarded as the king of trash-talking, and there are stark differences between him and Hokit. ‘The Notorious’ naturally intimidated his opponents, pulling off lines like “who the f—k is that guy,” to Jeremy Stephens at UFC 205 presser. In contrast, Hokit plays a different version of himself that stirs controversy, as he did with Jiri Prochazka at the UFC 327 media day by instigating a confrontation.
However, Poirier pointed out the common ground between Hokit and McGregor. The former two-division champion often played mind games with his opponents, including Jose Aldo and Eddie Alvarez, to win. Hokit too played mind games with Curtis Blaydes, saying, “You sick b—d, you will pay,” at the UFC 327 pre-fight press conference. That’s how he won.
Although UFC CEO Dana White wasn’t a fan of Hokit’s pre-fight antics, he acknowledged him after he backed up his “schtick” after beating the #5 heavyweight in the world. White said he wouldn’t say anything about Hokit’s character after that performance.
Dustin Poirier believes Josh Hokit turned himself into a star by backing up his words inside the cage
“You’ve seen it in Conor, Sean O’Malley, Chael Sonnen when guys talk the talk and walk the walk and Josh Hooker did it this week. He talked the big game and he went out there… pic.twitter.com/0G778Ku6Cs
— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA) April 12, 2026
With that outing in mind, the former NFL player has undeniably become a UFC star.
Chael Sonnen claims Josh Hokit was the star at UFC 327
Now, with praises coming Josh Hokit’s way, a UFC journalist has also lauded his performance.
“Say what you want about Josh Hokit, but that was a memorable, gutsy performance,” Helwani posted on X. “Feels like he definitely won some people over. Very impressive considering the jump in competition — Curtis Blaydes has been atop the HW division for so long. Much needed for the division.”
But OG trash talker Chael Sonnen doesn’t think Hokit gained ‘some’ fans at UFC 327.
“Are you joking??? He was star of the night. Pop wasn’t even close,” the former middleweight title challenger replied to Helwani’s tweet.
That said, what do you think: Is Josh Hokit finally one of the biggest UFC heavyweight stars?
Written by
Edited by
Abhimanyu Gupta