Hardy has revealed that he received a letter from the UFC on Tuesday officially granting him his release from the promotion after a thirteen-year stay.
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No longer under contract with the UFC as a commentator, former welterweight title challenger Dan Hardy now hopes to part ways as a fighter.
Despite it nearly being 10 years since “The Outlaw” stepped foot inside the Octagon, Hardy still aims for a return to competition if possible. But first, he needs to be released from his UFC fighter contract.
“The only thing that’s happened is I’ve asked two different people for my release from the UFC,” Hardy told Submission Radio. “Because obviously with one contract coming to an end, it would make sense for me to leave with my fight contract as well. So I’m currently trying to get my release from the UFC so then I can start looking at other places.
Dan Hardy calls for release from ‘embarrassing’ eight-year-old UFC contract
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The last time we all saw “The Outlaw” Dan Hardy inside the UFC cage was in September 2012. Then 30 years old, the one-time welterweight title challenger picked up his second straight win against Amir Sadollah in his hometown of Nottingham, England.
Hardy put his career on hold the following year after he was diagnosed with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, a heart condition. He had since taken on commentary duties for the UFC, mostly covering events outside the US.
The 38-year-old parted ways with the UFC in March, reportedly following an untoward incident with an employee. Now, he’s also calling for the termination of his fighter contract, which remained active despite his hiatus.
On the night of June 21, 2008, Amir Sadollah submitted C.B. Dollaway in the first round to win season seven of
The Ultimate Fighter. One fighter has gone on to put together a respectable career in the UFC, while the other has struggled to achieve any consistency over the last six-plus years. However, it was the loser that night who would become the long-term winner.
It’s Dollaway who has paved the way for himself to make a run at the middleweight title.
Dollaway, currently the ninth-ranked middleweight in the UFC, has won four out of his last five fights. The only loss in that span came by way of a split decision against Tim Boetsch at UFC 166. Had it not been for poking “The Barbarian” in the eye on more than one occasion during their fight, Dollaway may very well be riding five-fight winning streak right now.
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Dan Hardy may have lost out an ideal matchup for his return, but he has quickly moved on to somebody else that’s potentially planning a comeback.
This past month, Hardy and Matt Brown had been going back and forth on social media in hopes of setting up a fight. On Monday, MMA Fighting was first to report that Brown is set to face Dhiego Lima at the UFC’s June 19 event.
With Brown out of the picture for the time being, Hardy took to social media to challenge Nick Diaz.