“I’m an Advanced Fighter” – Greg Hardy Feels He Is Here to Stay

Greg Hardy pulled off the biggest victory of his career against Yorgan De Castro at UFC 249. The opener of the main card was more of a technical fight than an outright brawl. The former NFL star displayed the ability to execute a game plan inside the Octagon. In the post-fight press conference, Hardy was brimming with confidence.

He had just handed the Fall River native the first loss of his professional career. Hardy made good use of the reach advantage that he possessed over his opponent.

A big reason for Hardy’s win was also a possible injury that De Castro suffered midway into the fight. The latter missed a leg kick that he threw at Hardy. In all likelihood, the missed kick broke his toe.

Regardless, Hardy thinks that he executed the game plan perfectly that his coaches chalked up before the fight.

“It went exactly how I thought it was going to go. I said we would either bang it out in the first or we were going to bang it out for all three, and that’s exactly what we did. We played a smart game, but we were both in there to throw haymakers,” Hardy said after the fight.

Despite having a long way to go, Greg Hardy counts his achievement so far in the UFC

Not a lot of NFL players have made a transition to the UFC. Moreover, none of them has been as renowned as Greg Hardy. The former defensive end has had a mixed run in his professional career.

He lost his UFC debut via disqualification owing to illegal knees. He faced his biggest competition against Alexander Volkov. Despite coming short, Hardy showed that he can stand and trade with a quality opponent.

“My corners always tell me to use my athletic ability and stay smart out there, so that’s what I was trying to focus on and still deliver some big boy punches. I’m an advanced fighter, this is the third time I’ve done it – three 15 minute fights, three decent opponents, three great strikers, three great athletes,” Hardy said.

The Millington born fighter has set his aim for the professional career. Eventually, he wants to have the belt around his waist. Hardy wants to be in the same conversation as Cain Velasquez and Jon Jones. However, he knows that there is a long way to go for the same. As of right now, he is happy to be constantly evolving.

“I feel like I proved that I can stay focused, stay in the pocket and do my job. I’m here to stay, here to evolve and do my job,” Hardy concluded.

Apart from Alexander Volkov, Hardy’s opponents haven’t been the most experienced of fighters. Nonetheless, his fight against Yorgan De Castro is the best of his professional career. He will now look forward to carrying the opponent and make some noise against a ranked opponent.