Tag: Matt Hughes

Dan Hardy Clears the Air: Not Calling out ‘Dinosaur of Sport’ Matt Hughes

Dan Hardy is a man of many words. It’s part of his charm that has kept him in the UFC despite losing four straight fights before putting together back-to-back victories. One man who has drawn the ire of the Englishman is Matt Hughes.It was rumored that…

Dan Hardy is a man of many words. It’s part of his charm that has kept him in the UFC despite losing four straight fights before putting together back-to-back victories. One man who has drawn the ire of the Englishman is Matt Hughes.

It was rumored that the UFC was working on possibly putting Hardy and Hughes against one another but Hardy told ESPN he has no plans to face the aging veteran.

“My comments aren’t about picking a fight with him. I think he needs his a** kicking, but I’m not saying I’m specifically the guy to do it,” Hardy said.

Hardy’s comments focus mainly around Hughes’ hobby, hunting. Hughes has been the prototypical “country guy” throughout his career and doesn’t hide the fact that he’s an avid hunter; something Hardy doesn’t care for.

“I don’t agree with what he does as a person,” Hardy said. “Brock Lesnar‘s the same but he’s less in your face about it. It’s the hunting thing, but also you can speak to people who work with Matt Hughes and he doesn’t seem a nice person generally. I don’t like his morals.”

Hardy made it clear in the interview that even if Hughes were in a different weight class, the Englishman would still be vocal about his disdain of hunting animals. The last comment Hardy makes about facing Hughes may be the most indicative of why he doesn’t want to fight the former welterweight champion.

“I’m not pitching a fight… if it’s offered, obviously I’ll take it, but I’m not chasing one of the dinosaurs of the sport purely because I don’t like him as a person,” Hardy said.

I’m willing to bet Hardy had no problems facing Hughes following Hardy’s four straight losses, but now that he’s put together two straight victories, his attention is and should be on more relevant competition.

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And Now He’s Fired: Dennis Hallman Cut After Totally Screwing One of Our Parlays


(The ballsiest fighter to ever step foot in the octagon. *rimshot*) 

Well, we called this one.

In his past three fights, longtime MMA veteran Dennis Hallman has made some startling (not to mention amateur) choices to say the least. After losing a bet to his friend that resulted in one of the most horrifying wardrobe malfunctions of all time against Brian Ebersole at UFC 133, Dennis showed up two and a half pounds overweight for his fight against John Makdessi at UFC 140 and was subsequently fined 20% of his purse. Luckily for him, he was able to pick up a win. Unfortunately for him, he apparently took nothing away from the close call, and showed up seven pounds overweight at yesterday’s weigh-ins. His scheduled opponent, Thiago Tavares, basically treated the situation with an “Are you serious, bro?” but was able to strike a deal with Hallman that if he could get down to only 3 pounds over the limit, the fight would be on.

Hallman was allegedly able to do so, but Tavares then asked him to cut an additional pound, at which point Hallman asked to be removed from the card and became the most recent UFC fighter to join the unemployment line.


(The ballsiest fighter to ever step foot in the octagon. *rimshot*) 

Well, we called this one.

In his past three fights, longtime MMA veteran Dennis Hallman has made some startling (not to mention amateur) choices to say the least. After losing a bet to his friend that resulted in one of the most horrifying wardrobe malfunctions of all time against Brian Ebersole at UFC 133, Dennis showed up two and a half pounds overweight for his fight against John Makdessi at UFC 140 and was subsequently fined 20% of his purse. Luckily for him, he was able to pick up a win. Unfortunately for him, he apparently took nothing away from the close call, and showed up seven pounds overweight at yesterday’s weigh-ins. His scheduled opponent, Thiago Tavares, basically treated the situation with an “Are you serious, bro?” but was able to strike a deal with Hallman that if he could get down to only 3 pounds over the limit, the fight would be on.

Hallman was allegedly able to do so, but Tavares then asked him to cut an additional pound, at which point Hallman asked to be removed from the card and became the most recent UFC fighter to join the unemployment line. And let’s not even get into the fact that we were so confident that he would beat Tavares that we put him in one of our surefire parlays, which is now TOTALLY RUINED. Being a sixteen year veteran of the sport, it became obvious that something was apparently not right in the Hallman household, and he relayed this message to both Dana White and MMAFighting earlier today:

They are cutting me. Dana [White] gave me my show and win pay to help me deal with the mountain in front of me. Now I have to go make weight a couple times on the regional circuit. I’ll be back to the UFC though, I always am.

I’m having some personal issues at home. I’m not fit to fight. I told Dana [White] what my issues were. He understands family matters, and he was cool with me not fighting.

Interesting that Hallman received both his show and win money whereas Tavares only received his show money, but the fact that it’s basically severance pay for the time being makes it far more understandable.

Hallman also told MMAFighting that he was apparently only two pounds over the weight at the day of the weigh-ins, but passed out and received intravenous fluids which brought him back up to seven pounds over.

Fresh off a win over Makdessi and holding a professional record of 51-14, Hallman first debuted in the UFC way back at UFC 29, where he would score his second victory over Matt Hughes via first round submission, becoming the only fighter to ever do so. Hallman also holds notable UFC wins over Bellator muay Thai machine Ben Saunders and Karo Parisyan.

We would like to wish Dennis all the best in his future, and sincerely hope that he is able to overcome whatever personal issues he is currently facing.

We’ve added a video of Hallman’s first victory over Hughes, which went down at EC 21 in Wisconsin in 1998, below.

–J. Jones

Gallery: Matt Hughes and His Son Go Hunting in South Africa, Slay All of the Animals


(You think that’s impressive? You should see how Hughes handles a rhino.)

Fact: Matt Hughes loves hunting. Loves it. And whether you stand on the “hunting is for sociopaths” or the “guns are the only thing keeping giant underground worms from invading the earth” side of the issue, you gotta respect the former welterweight champion’s dedication to slaying every beast this earth has to offer, except for the most dangerous game, that is. In either case, Hughes recently partook in a South African hunting expedition with his son Joey, and the results look like what you would expect an Oregon Trail novice to haul in on his first Buffalo hunt. A lot of things were killed is what we’re saying. But before you jump on Hughes for blatantly wasting such delicious Zebra meat or being an ignorant redneck (we’re looking at you, Dan Hardy), know that the meat from animals hunted in African safaris is often donated to local villages in need, and the hefty licensing fees guys like Hughes have to pay to legally hunt such game help fund the nation’s conservation efforts. In other words: Fuck yeah guns!!

–J. Jones

Fact: Matt Hughes loves hunting. Loves it. And whether you stand on the “hunting is for sociopaths” or the “guns are the only thing keeping giant underground worms from invading the earth” side of the issue, you gotta respect the former welterweight champion’s dedication to slaying every beast this earth has to offer, except for the most dangerous game, that is. In either case, Hughes recently partook in a South African hunting expedition with his son Joey, and the results look like what you would expect an Oregon Trail novice to haul in on his first Buffalo hunt. A lot of things were killed is what we’re saying. But before you jump on Hughes for blatantly wasting such delicious Zebra meat or being an ignorant redneck (we’re looking at you, Dan Hardy), know that the meat from animals hunted in African safaris is often donated to local villages in need, and the hefty licensing fees guys like Hughes have to pay to legally hunt such game help fund the nation’s conservation efforts. In other words: Fuck yeah guns!!

–J. Jones

UFC Fighter Dan Hardy Implies That He Wants to Shoot Matt Hughes

Yesterday, Hall of Famer Matt Hughes went to his website and uploaded a gallery of photos from his hunting trip to Africa. In that gallery, Hughes and his son pose next to their “trophies” while holding up the weapon they used to kill the animal. …

Yesterday, Hall of Famer Matt Hughes went to his website and uploaded a gallery of photos from his hunting trip to Africa. In that gallery, Hughes and his son pose next to their “trophies” while holding up the weapon they used to kill the animal. 

A hunting trip can be a bonding experience for a father and son, although Dan Hardy did not take kind to the photographs. Hardy has always been a brash talker who can get under the skin of his opponents, although his tweet earlier today may have crossed a line.

When is open season on ignorant, red neck, misguided, phony-Christian assholes? I would love to shoot some of those. matt-hughes.com/blog1/2012/09/

— Dan Hardy (@danhardymma) September 19, 2012

I can understand standing up for animal rights, and it’s not a new practice for someone opposed to hunting to hypothetically play role-reversal with the hunter. However, this seems like Hardy is already looking to secure his next opponent following a bout with Amir Sadollah next week at UFC on Fuel 5.

Back in March, Hardy campaigned for a bout with Hughes in an interview with MMA Weekly Radio.

I would love to figure that out, that blood thirsty kill freak. I can’t stand the dude…I’d love to get a shot at him, but the thing with Matt Hughes is I don’t like him as a person, but I can’t help but respect him as a fighter. He achieved a lot and I enjoyed watching him fight when he was at his peak…The thing is, at this stage in his career, I know he’s past his peak. I know he’s not looked great in his last few fights, and maybe he’s kind of winding down…I would love to fight him and, if he was willing to take the fight, I would by all means love to get in there and put it on him, but I’m not going to chase after the guy cause he has passed his peak and he may not want to a fight against someone who doesn’t like him as much as me.

How do you feel about the comment? In a world where fighters are commonly being reprimanded for their Twitter activity, did Hardy cross a line by saying that he would like to shoot Hughes with a gun? Will Dana punish this hate speech? 

Most importantly, are you interested in seeing Dan Hardy vs. Matt Hughes?

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The 10 Most Compelling Main Events in UFC History

What makes a the main event of a Pay-Per-View so special? Is it big name fighters going toe-to-toe? Is it a championship bout in which one fighter can prove that he is the best on the planet? Maybe even a stylistic matchup that promises to be a gun-sli…

What makes a the main event of a Pay-Per-View so special? Is it big name fighters going toe-to-toe? Is it a championship bout in which one fighter can prove that he is the best on the planet? Maybe even a stylistic matchup that promises to be a gun-slinging affair?

In any situation, the selection of a main event can make or break any PPV. You need the perfect blend of star-power, potential for action and opponents who are both relevant and cared about.

A well planned main event will light up the message boards with commentary, predictions and more regarding every aspect of the hotly anticipated affair.

Here is a look at the 10 most compelling main events in UFC history.

Editor’s Note: Any fight that was a main event during the tournament-friendly days of the UFC was not considered. The reason for this is that the main event was not determined until some point within the card, and therefore not promotable.

Begin Slideshow

Matt Hughes and Sean Sherk: It’s Time to Retire from the UFC

Would you believe me, if I told you this very instant, that Sean Sherk is still on the UFC roster?It’s true. To the best of my knowledge, Sherk is still maintaining a spot on the roster despite not having actually stepped in the cage in close to two ye…

Would you believe me, if I told you this very instant, that Sean Sherk is still on the UFC roster?

It’s true. To the best of my knowledge, Sherk is still maintaining a spot on the roster despite not having actually stepped in the cage in close to two years. That was UFC 119 and Sherk’s opponent was Evan Dunham, and Sherk somehow won a split-decision victory despite—at least according to most of us who actually, you know, watched the fight—not really winning a decision at all. 

It’s been well over four years at this point since Sherk has convincingly won a fight. Yet he’s still maintaining a roster spot, and I’m not sure why.

I’m much more understanding when it comes to Matt Hughes, but he’s in the same kind of weird holding pattern as Sherk. He lost his previous two fights, with his last actual appearance in the cage coming a year ago at UFC 135, and he’s been virtually nonexistent since that night.

He showed up for a Hall of Fame induction—an honor that is richly deserved—and made a few comments here and there about letting his wife decide if was the right time for him to walk away from the sport where he made his name.

Will Hughes come back to the cage? Your guess is as good as mine. But here’s the dilemma: What’s the point? 

We hear Dana White say it about aging fighters all the time, but it certainly rings true for Hughes: This guy has absolutely nothing to prove. There is no reason for him to step back in the cage again, not ever, not for any reason. He hasn’t been great since losing to Georges St-Pierre back in 2006, but the last six years of his career will never and could never cast a shadow over what Hughes accomplished during the first portion of his career. 

Hughes had a brief resurgence in 2009 and 2010, but let’s be honest with ourselves here—at the end of the day, he still beat Matt Serra, Renzo Gracie and Ricardo Almeida, three fighters who were also already well past their expiration dates when they faced Hughes. 

And we shouldn’t forget that Hughes was viciously knocked out in his last two fights with Josh Koscheck and B.J. Penn. The chin isn’t there anymore, so what’s the point in going out and risking brain damage by taking needless punishment? Hughes doesn’t need to fight. 

Sherk isn’t in the same boat. He’s not a legend like Hughes, and I doubt very highly that he’s made enough money over the course of his career that he can just walk away now and live for the rest of his life on his UFC nest egg. Sherk probably needs to fight, and yet he just continues to string it along, always putting one toe in or out and never going all the way.

It’s time to make a decision. If Hughes and Sherk made the decision today to walk away from this sport, I’d applaud them and thank them for all they’ve done as pioneers for the sport in their respective weight classes. But there’s no point in stringing it along, in putting it off in the hopes of making a late-career resurgence on par with Randy Couture.

It just isn’t going to happen, and the time has come to deal with it.

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