Former UFC heavyweight Greg Hardy is back in the news again. After getting released from the UFC, Hardy freshly stepped into the ring at Knucklemania 3 against Josh Watson in a BKFC event held in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Unfortunately for the former NFL player, it ended up with a vicious knockout loss for him just 19 seconds into the second round, resulting in the fourth consecutive KO/TKO loss for the 34-year-old in his fight career. As clips of the KO started doing the rounds on Twitter, fight fans had a field day taunting Hardy. While there was also a bunch who suggested that fighting might just not be the right profession anymore for the athlete.
For Hardy, coming off a three-fight losing streak at UFC, a win here could have helped him serve as some sort of bounce back. But after this result and considering the amount of damage he has taken, many would feel that the reactions from the fans were quite natural.
Greg Hardy folded with a left hook at Knucklemania 3; drawing huge reactions from fight fans
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A strong left hook was all it took for Josh Watson to finish the fight. As Hardy lunged in with his own left, Watson dealt a beautiful counter that dropped the former UFC fighter. Although Hardy tried to recover, the official ten counts were not enough, and they eventually stopped the bout.
Fight fans didn’t waste time hopping on Twitter and retweeting the clip multiple times. While some were just brutal in their reaction to Hardy‘s loss, a few even suggested that the heavyweight move on to another controversial sport.
Greg Hardy got put to sleep. #KnuckleMania3 pic.twitter.com/1BpFwLTOLW
— Edwin (@Simeoneball) February 18, 2023
A majority of the reactions were a reference to his controversial past.
Greg Hardy's career is basically him discovering that fighting grown men is a lot harder than beating women. 😂
— xi_so_ronery (@catosknife1) February 18, 2023
Couldn't happen 2 better D/ Bag 🤡🤣🤣🤣🤣 than him tough guy beating up on women 😂 https://t.co/9Hg3z4P3VN
— Diamond Johnson (@Diamond27853975) February 18, 2023
I’ll never get tired of watching a woman beater get their ass beat https://t.co/yUKPTqhfic
— Pas (@wulfwriting) February 18, 2023
He should have given him at least one more like Hendo did Bisping…
Hardy finding out fighting grown ass men isn’t as easy as women half his size continues to be the gift that keeps on giving. https://t.co/gPjCgeIC6Q
— 𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝕶𝖓𝖚𝖉𝖘𝖔𝖓 (𝕻𝕮) (@TheKnudson) February 18, 2023
A couple of individuals even suggested that he move to Power Slap.
he's on the path to powerslap
— Mike D (@IstarScion) February 18, 2023
There’s only one last stone to collect Greg…
That’s right…
Power Slap League. https://t.co/gkUuRHF2ZP
— Skyler Alpizar | Miami Realtor (@Skyy_J305) February 18, 2023
A UFC fan even wondered if he had a worse chin than Cody Garbrandt.
The biggest debate now is who has the worse chin @GregHardyJr or @Cody_Nolove
— James (@jaystav0727) February 18, 2023
Another fan also felt that Hardy was offered only easier fights during his time at the UFC.
Greg Hardy no longer having bums fed to him by UFC finding out fighting not so easy. https://t.co/ErmiA1ypbq
— Josh Rizzo (@J_oshRizzo) February 18, 2023
Although one fan did point out the apparent damage that Hardy has taken both as a fighter and in the NFL.
NFL CTE wasn’t enough my man needs ALL THE CTE https://t.co/tBphnWsyhk
— nick (@justreadin11) February 18, 2023
One keen individual even noted how the KO was similar to the way Hardy lost to Tai Tuivasa back in UFC 264.
Looks just like the Tuivasa finish. Throws himself way out of position with a punch an gets cracked.
— Christopian (@Theonliest1) February 18, 2023
It does look like fans haven’t forgiven the former NFL player for his controversial actions in the past. Now, this loss appears to have given haters of the fighter another opportunity to bash him online.
Hardy transitioned to bare-knuckle after suffering a losing skid at UFC
Greg Hardy transitioned into MMA in 2017 and surprisingly started off well with a few amateur wins. Following that, he was given the opportunity to fight on Dana White’s contender series. Another couple of wins here saw the heavyweight make his UFC debut in 2019, which unfortunately ended in a DQ owing to an illegal knee.
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Although Hardy did end up collecting a few wins, he couldn’t keep up with the competition as the quality of his opponents got better over the next few fights. His last three fights ended in losses as he faced the likes of Tai Tuivasa and Serghei Spivac who are amongst the top heavyweights in the UFC currently.
Ultimately, a loss like this definitely isn’t a good start to Hardy‘s bare-knuckle career. As many of the fans suggested, the damage and risks involved are just too high for the former NFL player to continue taking.
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What do you think of the 34-year-old’s future? Let us know in the comment section.
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