UFC 146 was the day that Dan Hardy saved his career.
The former welterweight title challenger, in search of his first win since late 2009, finally snapped his four-fight losing streak by starching kickboxing specialist Duane Ludwig with a patented left hook.
Coming into Saturday night, there was little doubt that a loss would be the end of Hardy’s UFC career, no matter how much Dana White, Joe Silva and company love his penchant for “bringing it.” Three losses in a row are usually a quick ticket out of town, and fans were already calling for Hardy’s contractual head before he even stepped into the Octagon against Ludwig.
(Side note: I’ll never understand the bloodlust of fans in regards to cutting fighters. These competitors literally put their lives on the line for our entertainment and we applaud fighters who ‘go for it’ and don’t ‘play it safe.’ But lose a couple of fights—even in exciting fashion—and watch the tweets roll in from people calling for your livelihood to be taken away. Talk about cold-blooded.)
But now that Hardy has a fresh winning streak to build on, he leaves behind a less-than-esteemed list of colleagues who still have their collective backs against the wall. Consider this your ultimate Who-Needs-A-Win list, as we take a look at the fighters with the worst current UFC losing streaks and where they will go from here.