In less than three years with the UFC, Dan “The Outlaw” Hardy has gone from hot welterweight prospect to fighting for his UFC life.
Hardy came into the UFC with a 19-6-0-1 record and proceeded to run up a four-fight winning streak that earned him a shot at welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre.
St-Pierre defeated Hardy via unanimous decision in their March 2010 bout. Since then Hardy has fallen to Carlos Condit via first-round knockout and more recently Anthony Johnson via unanimous decision.
Following the loss to Johnson, Hardy posted the following on Twitter:
Feeling very frustrated today. No excuses, sometimes you just dont win. I hate having boring fights though.
I want to fight again. I feel like Ive been robbed of the reward at the end of training camp.
An oldschool shootout with a guy that wants to throw down. Screw the rankings, records are for DJs.
Win in a blaze of glory or go out on my shield. Someone like Mr Lytle…
It seems as if Hardy has received his wish, as ESPN has reported that Hardy and Chris Lytle will meet on August 14 in Milwaukee on the UFC on Versus 5 fight card.
Lytle, the recipient of eight UFC Fight Night bonus awards, has never been shy about giving the fans a fight they want to see and that is exactly what Hardy is looking for.
“This is the kind a fight you can define your career around,” Hardy told ESPN. “You can guarantee Chris Lytle will bring it, that he will have an exciting fight. He’s someone I have always respected because of his attitude. Everyone loves to watch this guy fight; the UFC, the fans and I but especially his bank manager with all those Fight of the Night bonuses he gets.”
Hardy knows the stakes are high in this fight and that a fourth consecutive loss would put his UFC career in serious doubt. With that in mind, he plans on moving to Las Vegas to train for his fight with Lytle. “I am getting a place in Las Vegas and I’m training full-time with Roy Nelson and some of the best in the world. I used to split my time between LA and Nottingham, but there’s more MMA in Vegas so me and my girlfriend are getting a place there. Roy is already adding things to my game but we’ve not scratched the surface of what he can teach me.”
UFC on Versus 5 will take place on August 14, 2011 at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
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