Tyron Woodley agreed to step up on short notice to rematch Jake Paul at the Showtime boxing pay-per-view (PPV) event on Dec. 18 in Tampa after “The Problem Child’s” original opponent, Tommy Fury, was felled by illness and forced to withdraw.
But that doesn’t mean Woodley’s showdown against Dan Hardy is off the table, according to “The Outlaw.” Assuming “The Chosen One” doesn’t get hurt in his “sweet science” return — or do something that warrants a trilogy — they could throw leather as early as March.
“I’m a bit disappointed, because I was looking forward to the Jake Paul-Tommy Fury fight, to be honest. But I’m glad that Tyron’s getting his rematch. I mean, it’s a second opportunity that he may not have got otherwise,” Hardy told Submission Radio. “But it also makes sense as to why he’s gone a bit quiet with the other promoter that we’ve been speaking to, because they probably had him in reserve thinking one of these guys might fall out anyway. But the fight that we were talking about is in March, so there’s still time to make that happen. I’m talking with ONE Championship as well at the moment, as well as another organization which has contacted me. So, I’ve got a few options.”
One of those options is kickboxing icon John Wayne Parr, a fight that would take place under the ONE Championship banner. Hardy, who turns 40 in May, has not competed since a unanimous decision victory over Amir Sadollah back in Sept. 2012.
That’s because “The Outlaw” was forced into retirement by UFC after being diagnosed with “Wolf Heart” in 2013. Hardy (25-10, 1 NC) has been able to score a clean bill of health in the years that followed and should be fit to compete in his 2022 return.
Whether or not that’s against Woodley remains to be seen.