Sunday night in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Dan Hardy and Chris Lytle will square of in a welterweight match up that has fight of the year written all over it. Both men always leave it all inside the octagon. Both men are coming off of a loss, and need to redeem themselves, especially Hardy who has lost his last three fights.
Chris Lytle is an extremely well-rounded fighter. He is a former high school wrestler, pro boxer and is also a second degree black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. His MMA record is 30-18-5, he lost 16 of the 18 fights by decision and the other two losses were due to doctor stoppages. Lytle is as tough as they come. As a pro boxer he compiled a 13-1-1 and was an Indiana state champion, defending his belt two times. At almost 37 years old, his career is coming to a close, but he is in arguably the best shape of his life.
Lytle is the type of fighter that lays it on you. He is extremely active throughout the whole fight. He likes to stand and trade, but when the time is right he isn’t afraid to take you down and submit you. In his bout with Hardy, the smart thing would be to take the fight to the ground, where Hardy lacks experience but will never give up.
Dan Hardy is one of the most well liked fighters in the UFC. He is all about his fans, and always shows up to put on an exciting show. He is primarily a striker, but has recently started training with Roy Nelson to improve his ground game. He has lost three fights in a row, if he loses this there is a high chance he will be cut unless the UFC wants to save him for a card overseas, due to his popularity.
Hardy needs to keep his distance and play this fight smart. He needs to cut off Lytle and counter his punches. He also needs to maintain octagon control. If he doesn’t then it maybe a long night for him, because Lytle will be able to score take down after take down.
These two men are a great match up for each other, and with eight post fight bonuses under his belt this fight sets Lytle up for a ninth. This fight will be at a fast pace, most likely with Lytle getting the better of Hardy in the take down department. This fight will be back and fourth, but Lytle should catch him in the second round with an impressive submission, and possibly taking submission of the night honors.
This truly should be an impressive fight, now let’s take a look at the ten most impressive finishes in the UFC so far in 2011.