Greg Hardy’s post-NFL career has been very mixed. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
Greg Hardy’s meandering post-NFL career made his Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship debut on Friday. It didn’t go well.
The former Pro Bowl pass rusher entered BKFC: Knucklemania 3 as the overwhelming favorite against underdog Josh Watson, but received a cold dose of reality at the end of the first round when a left hand from Watson sent him into the ropes.
The hit was ruled a knockdown as the ropes prevented Hardy’s fall, resulting in a 10 count from referee Dan Miragliotta.
The first round ended before Watson could do any more damage, but then he hit Hardy with another left hook in the second, throwing him horizontally and ending the fight.
Watson attended his third BKFC event and held a 1-1 record with promotion. Before that, he had been per Tapology for eight years since a small MMA career.
The BKFC organizers who signed Hardy no doubt felt the same way the UFC did in 2019 when Hardy made his promotional debut as a -500 favorite against Allen Crowder. Dana White and company had hoped that Hardy’s athleticism and existing following could give them a new star, but then Hardy lost his debut to an illegal knee in a fight he barely dominated.
That night more or less set the tone for Hardy’s MMA career. The UFC kept feeding him lower league opponents until he got his big shot against Alexander Volkov and lost. Hardy exited the promotion last year with a career MMA record of 7-5 with a no contest.
Hardy also entered the boxing world late last year with two fights, the latter a win over Hasim Rahman Jr., whose claim to fame to this day almost battles Jake Paul.
The whole spectacle is a far cry from Hardy’s NFL heyday, where he had 40 sacks in six seasons with the Carolina Panthers and Dallas Cowboys. That career ended amid a cloud of outrage over domestic allegations against him.