After a third consecutive knockout loss in the octagon, Greg Hardy needs to give up on his UFC career. His defeat at the hands of Sergey Spivak was brutal to watch. Simply put, the former defensive end looked like a guy playing MMA fighter. This is just as bad as Dana White’s CM Punk experiment. Maybe worse.
Look, you could easily argue Greg Hardy shouldn’t have a UFC career to begin with. His legal troubles saw him become a persona non grata in the NFL. And then his path to MMA’s biggest stage was questionable at best. Nine bouts in and the onetime Dallas Cowboys player has an underwhelming record of 4-5.
The thing that made absolutely no sense during his most recent loss were announcers Joe Rogan and Michael Bisping talking up how much Hardy has grown as a mixed martial artist. He started as a big-ass dude in a cage hoping to land a few lucky punches and still looks the part.
And it’s not like the Moldovan heavyweight he faced this time around was particularly impressive. Spivak wasn’t even ranked among the top 15 heavyweights. Yet, Hardy got taken to school, failing to make it past the first round. His four wins look more and more to be the definition of the phrase “puncher’s chance”.
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Greg Hardy could have had a UFC career…25 years ago
Greg Hardy could have had a successful UFC career 25 years or so ago in the sport’s outlaw era. Guys like Paul Varelans and Scott Ferrozzo would have been perfectly adequate competition. They’re all massive men who can hit really hard but didn’t understand the nuances of fighting.
However, that hasn’t been an acceptable strategy in decades. Even bottom of the ladder MMA fighters are still highly trained and capable of negating the former All-Pro’s strength advantage.
It’s not fun to watch because Hardy is systematically picked apart by opponents who are more skilled than him. Hell, he’s not even the wildest striker in heavyweight division as we saw during a knockout loss to Tai Tuivasa.
Worst of all, his biggest claim to fame has diminished as Hardy isn’t a recognizable name anymore. He hasn’t played in the NFL since 2015. Twitter doesn’t feign outrage when he fights. Much like his football career, Greg Hardy’s UFC career is done.
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