While his first run with the promotion is over, UFC president Dana White isn’t completely out on former NFL star Greg Hardy.
Hardy (7-5 MMA, 4-5 UFC), 33, made 10 walks to the UFC’s octagon after his All-Pro NFL career, completing his contract after a first-round TKO loss to Serghei Spivac at UFC 272. The result marked the third-straight stoppage loss for Hardy, whose most recent win was a second-round finish of Maurice Greene at UFC on ESPN+ 39 in October 2020.
Despite his sub-.500 record in the UFC, White is open to a return for Hardy, depending on how he fares in other promotions.
“We’ll see what he does outside of the UFC,” White told MMA Fighting. “He came in here and didn’t have a bad run. He hung around in here for a minute. Always a first-class guy, loved working with him, and I like the guy. So, let’s see what he can do in some of these smaller shows.”
Following a three-fight amateur career, Hardy’s first professional contest was an appearance on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2018. He knocked out Austin Lane in the first round, but was not offered entry into the UFC. The result was the same in his second DWCS appearance just two months after, with a 17-second finish of Tebaris Gordon. After picking up his third-straight first-round finish at Xtreme Fight Night 352, Hardy was brought in to fight under the UFC banner, where his first contest resulted in a loss due to an illegal knee to Allen Crowder.
Hardy was able to win back-to-back fights in the UFC twice, but ultimately, he finished his contract with more losses than victories. Following his exit, Hardy vowed to work on his game and continue fighting. While the next steps in his career are unclear, it appears the doors are not shut to the UFC should he show improvements and record a few wins.
Dana White open to ‘first-class guy’ Greg Hardy’s return if successful outside of UFC
