In the second part of Indira Stewart’s investigation into the growing phenomenon of unregulated backyard fights, she unpicks the hype and the politics.
In one corner, there’s Dan Hooker, who wants to find a group of men with “dad bods” and no experience of fighting to scrap it out for $50,000 in prize money.
In the other, there’s Mark Mitchell, the government minister responsible. He says Hooker is a “hype guy” whose unregulated events are one of the reasons the law needs to be reviewed – and possibly changed.
Watch Indira Stewart's investigation of backyard fights on TVNZ+
The two camps may be set for a head-on collision as the backyard fight scene grows exponentially, fuelled by social media exposure. With them comes concerns about safety – or the lack of.
Hooker, a UFC fighter, is a prominent organiser with a gift for building the buzz around events. His latest promotion saw almost a thousand people turn up at Auckland Domain earlier this month.
Most of them were hopeful men in their thirties and forties wanting to have a crack at the $50,000 prize fight.
It was an unprecedented public response to a social media call out from Hooker, who was after “32 Dads” with “no fighting experience” and a “Dad bod”.
The event didn’t get any mainstream media coverage, but on social media it was talked about for weeks. In podcasts, influencer posts and startling video footage showing hundreds of men sparring each other and sprinting uphill.
What was meant to be a simple sign-up and a weigh-in process, quickly turned into an impromptu elimination test once Hooker realised how long the lines were.
By the day’s end, 32 “big papas”, in one commenter’s words, were picked for the upcoming fight club event dubbed “Daddest Man on the Planet”.
Perhaps media and critics are sick of Hooker and his rage-bait video posts. The 35-year-old lightweight UFC contender, who tapped out after being dominated by No 1-ranked Arman Tsarukyan in Qatar last week, has been annoying officials all year.
Months ago he called for “convicts only” to fight in his next tournament, now he wants "dads” battling it out “with their bare bellies” for a big cash prize.
Long before Hooker’s events, the unregulated fight club scene had been on the rise at grassroots level for years. Now, it’s exploding.
When almost a thousand people show up to a public fight-selection event, how much longer can we ignore it?
Minister Mark Mitchell may want to ignore Hooker but he's paying close attention to the growing fight club scene. “He’s just trying to be a hype guy,” he says in a sit down interview for TVNZ+.
Mitchell is Minister for Police, Sport and Recreation, Corrections, Emergency Management and Recovery and Ethnic Communities. Somewhere in between all of that, he also does combat sports in his spare time.
“I enjoy box fit. I enjoy doing boxing. It’s a great way to stay healthy. I love the programmes that have been run, even here locally in my own electorate,” he says.
As for Hooker and his events: “I guess for me, when you've got a promoter out there who makes outrageous comments like that, it's because he wants to draw attention to it. But he's also going to draw our attention to it as well.
“It just highlights how important it is to get this legislation reviewed.”
The glaring issues with the 1981 Boxing and Wrestling Act seem to be that there are no consistent standards for how different events are run, even if they’re approved under the Act – that includes charity and corporate boxing events.
When it comes to other combat sports, such as mixed martial arts (MMA) and kickboxing, it’s not even included in the legislation.
Many of the unregulated fight club events 1News has observed while researching this story mostly involve boxing. But if they include just an element of MMA or other combat sports, they can bypass the law and get sanctioned by an independent MMA-approved organisation instead.
Mitchell agrees many of the backyard fight club events, including those run by Hooker, aren’t breaking the law. But, he pointed out, these are not regulated events.
“I acknowledge that the legislation does need a review. It's probably outdated.
I'm not against using combat sports, boxing, wrestling. I think there's a real place for that,” he says.
“It's about having great mentors and role models around young people. It's about teaching them the right values, and it's about participating in the sport in the right way.”
Hooker has announced more events to come in 2026, likely drawing urgent attention from officials given a review, led by Minister for Internal Affairs Brooke Van Velden, is already underway.
Because, as the fight club scene on social media grows, it begs the questions – what’s the purpose? Is it safe? Is it regulated?
1News wanted to ask Hooker some of those questions, be he did not respond when contacted.
At a grassroots level, many events have been attached to raising awareness on issues like mental health and suicide.
Many of the fighters filmed for this investigation in recent months have been part of rehabilitation programmes for offenders or those who’ve struggled with addictions.
They’ve told us combat sports and fitness training have been positive tools for change. The events themselves seem to have brought some unity between rival gangs, easing historical tensions that have existed for decades.
We’ve observed unregulated fight club events which have involved qualified and well-known referees with fighters required to produce a medical waiver from a doctor or nurse who is satisfied they are in good condition to participate in a fight.
Other events, including Hooker’s tournaments, have raised concerns – mainly, how fighters were paired and whether it was fair? At some events, opponents seemed to have a significant weight difference or fighting level of experience between them.
At one South Auckland event we saw multiple knockouts within the first hour.
World renowned MMA Coach Lolo Heimuli believes there’s always going to be a danger element in combat sports but a $50,000 prize is tempting for many.
“It’s when they put that carrot, with the money, a lot of people hop in there even with no experience because that kind of money will probably make a big difference in your life,” he says.
“If you have somebody who’s just walked off, never fought in his life, he’s going to get hit very badly.”
That’s one of the issues the Government’s review of the law will have to look at resolving. Mitchell’s officials are advising the review and he expects it be out before next year’s election. “It’s timely and important now that we get it right,” he says.
Watch Indira Stewart's investigation of backyard fights on TVNZ+
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