Parnasse destroys Hooker in half a round at UFC Paris, calls out Holloway as dream fight

Salahdine Parnasse wasted no time making his mark in the UFC, stopping Dan Hooker with a vicious knockout inside half a round to headline UFC Paris on Saturday. The former two-division KSW champion needed just over 90 seconds to end the fight, delivering on the hype that surrounded his move to the promotion.

In his post-fight interview, Parnasse made his ambitions clear, calling out Max Holloway in front of his home crowd.

“I’m ready for the next fight, top 5,” Parnasse said through a French translator. “My dream fight is Max Holloway. Max Holloway is the legend. Big respect, Max Holloway, my dream fight is Max Holloway. I’m ready for Max Holloway or top 5, UFC, I’m ready.”

At the post-fight press conference, Parnasse expanded on why Holloway appeals to him beyond just the name value.

“He’s a very well-conditioned guy,” Parnasse said. “He was the champion, ‘BMF’ champion. It’s always been a dream just to see who’s better conditioned, me or him.”

Holloway is coming off his win over Conor McGregor at UFC 329, though that bout ended in disappointment when McGregor suffered a knee injury that forced a stoppage at just 69 seconds. With Holloway appearing to bide his time while the top of the lightweight division is sorted, a matchup with Parnasse may not materialise immediately.

Parnasse has now won six consecutive fights and 11 of his last 12, a run that includes multiple championship bouts at both 155 and 145 pounds during his time with KSW. The knockout of Hooker — a longtime lightweight contender — is his most significant result to date and signals he is ready to compete at the upper end of the division.

When asked how quickly he expects to challenge for the UFC lightweight title, Parnasse was optimistic but measured.

“I’m going after the belt,” he said. “I want to go step by step and keep moving up the division and I want to be the best in the world. We’ll see, I hope maybe my third fight. We’ll see.”