Dan Hooker, a captain of City Kickboxing, says the gym will likely move from New Zealand.
Due to New Zealand’s strict lockdown rules, the gym was shut down, and Hooker and other fighters couldn’t train. To make matters worse, the country has closed the quarantine booking system, meaning if you leave the country now, it may be a year or before you are allowed to return. With that, Hooker says the team at CKB has discussed moving the gym elsewhere to get away from New Zealand.
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“They’ve actually closed the booking system here in New Zealand so you can’t actually get back into the country altogether,” Hooker said on Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com. “What a few of us other fighters from New Zealand are looking at doing is potentially stationing ourselves offshore and stationing ourselves out of New Zealand for the foreseeable future.”
Although the quarantine system is closed, Hooker was able to book his spot so he gets to return a week after UFC 266. When he returns, he will have two weeks in a hotel with some of his teammates and coaches where they will decide where they will relocate and move City Kickboxing.
“My voucher to get back into New Zealand is for a week after the fight. I have a week in Vegas doing whatever happens after the fight,” Hooker explained. “Then, I’m back in New Zealand, and time to look at things and reevaluate our situation and where we need to be training in the future.”
Where exactly they will move is uncertain. Yet, Dan Hooker knows their time training in New Zealand is likely over due to their strict rules. Hooker says it’s not something any of them wanted to do, but the government’s rules forced them to relocate.
“Yeah, I haven’t put too much thought into it as I have been dealing with the obstacles at hand and focusing on Nasrat. The way it’s looking, I can’t speak for my teammates, it’s looking like stationing away from New Zealand. Our hand is forced,” Hooker concluded.
What do you make of Dan Hooker saying City Kickboxing will likely leave New Zealand due to their lockdown rules?