Maurice Hooker’s fight against Jose Ramirez was over before Hooker knew what hit him.

Hooker recalls a momentary lapse in focus costing him dearly during the sixth round of the most important fight of his career. Their 12-round, 140-pound title unification bout had been competitive before Ramirez caught Hooker with a left hook that abruptly altered it in July 2019.

Ramirez’s hook knocked Hooker into the ropes, where Ramirez unloaded several unanswered head shots. Referee Mark Nelson immediately determined Hooker was too vulnerable to continue and jumped between them to stop their fight at College Park Center in Arlington, Texas.

The 31-year-old Hooker is determined to avoid making a similar mistake versus Vergil Ortiz Jr. on Saturday night. The former WBO junior welterweight champion understands that he can’t afford to lose focus for a split second against a dangerous puncher like Ortiz (16-0, 16 KOs).

“I just have to go in there and be smart, don’t lose focus, and stay with the game plan,” Hooker told BoxingScene.com. “With that [Ramirez] fight, I was fighting out of anger. I didn’t stick to the game plan. So, this fight I’ve just gotta be smart. Whatever’s working, I just have to stay with it.”

Hooker claims distractions outside of the ring were partially responsible for his performance against Ramirez (26-0, 17 KOs), who will face Scottish southpaw Josh Taylor (17-0, 13 KOs) in a full championship unification match May 22 in Las Vegas. The Dallas native hired Terence Crawford’s training team, headed by Brian McIntyre, after his loss to Ramirez.

They’ve worked together for just one fight – Hooker’s first-round stoppage of Mexico’s Uriel Perez (19-5, 18 KOs) in December 2019. Hooker hasn’t fought in the almost 15 months since he stopped Perez at Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix.

Nevertheless, Hooker (27-1-3, 18 KOs) is generally regarded as the best opponent Ortiz has agreed to fight since he made his pro debut in July 2016. The 22-year-old Ortiz, of Grand Prairie, Texas, still is consistently listed as at least a 12-1 favorite by Internet sports books.

The 31-year-old Hooker accepted this daunting assignment because, in addition to a substantial purse, it’ll afford him an opportunity to rejuvenate his career against one of the top up-and-coming contenders in boxing.

“It would mean everything for me to show everybody I still have it,” Hooker said. “It’s my drive to be the best. I mean, it would mean everything to me to take this victory over a guy like this, because he has a lot of buzz about him.”

DAZN will stream Ortiz-Hooker as its main event Saturday night from Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas (9 p.m. ET).

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.