Ex-NFL star Greg Hardy made waves when he was disqualified in his co-main event bout (watch it here) against Allen Crowder at last night’s (Sat., January 19, 2019) UFC on ESPN+ 1 from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
Hardy hit a downed Crowder with a monstrous knee that badly hurt him. When referee Dan Miragliotta rushed in to pull him off, he appeared to land a follow-up punch. Crowder was badly dazed from the strikes. The fight was understandably called off as result.
After the bout, Hardy denied he was a cheater.
It was the worst possible outcome for the oft-discussed heavyweight who remains shrouded in the controversy of a domestic violence scandal from five years ago. Many chalked it up to pure inexperience and lack of Octagon IQ, but most aren’t going to look at those aspects of the situation. UFC President Dana White thought Hardy displayed some good qualities, however. He told the media last night that he ‘learned Hardy can fight’ despite the bad result – via MMA Mania:
“One thing that I did learn about Hardy tonight, he can fight. He can fight, he’s an athlete, not only can he punch hard, but he can take a big punch. He got hit with some good shots tonight, his ground game, I think everybody thought if he got taken down to the ground that was gonna be the end of him.”
A “Rookie Mistake?”
White was also clearly among those that thought Hardy simply made a mistake. He affirmed his belief that Hardy got out of some bad spots on the ground:
“He got out of trouble on the ground several times, and he learned a lot tonight,” White continued. “Yeah, he’ll get another fight. He made a real big rookie mistake and it caused him an ‘L’ tonight. It ruined his perfect record.”
Well, it is a ‘rookie mistake,’ but
The UFC’s love affair with Hardy continues. They clearly want to make him a star due to his mainstream appeal and controversy. He’ll get another fight, but he’ll need to win and win big to get back on track.
Is it truly worth it for the UFC?
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