Five suspicious things about the Dan Hardy/Chris Lytle fight
By Matt Larkin
Guest writer
I hate when I get this feeling about MMA bouts – but the Dan Hardy/Chris Lytle main event on Sunday’s UFC on Versus card made me sick to my stomach. If felt very suspicious, almost artificial, like a WWE event. Here are five reasons why the Chris Lytle’s submission win over Dan Hardy made me nervous that it was fixed – almost more so than any other fight I can remember.
1. Chris Lytle was retiring after the fight and looking for a storybook ending. It almost felt too perfect. Lytle wanted to end his exciting career on a high note, with another bonus for a finish or Fight of the Night, and the victory with less than a minute on the clock was awfully convenient.
2. Since when does Dan Hardy not throw kicks? It felt like Hardy and Lytle agreed before the fight that boxing would be their primary fighting style and that they’d keep the other forms of striking to a minimum. Hardy is a Taekwondo black belt. Why did he use so few kicks to set up his strikes? He turned himself into Lytle’s personal punching bag, eating tons of shots while barely attempting to block them.
3. Since when does Dan Hardy attempt takedowns? We all know that Hardy’s weakness is his ground game. His wrestling and BJJ are passable at best. So why on Earth did he attempt late in the fourth round to take down Lytle, a man with superior ground skills? It felt like he was setting himself up to be submitted when he should’ve been going for broke with his fists.
4. Since when does Dan Hardy tap? Remember when Georges St-Pierre caught him in an armbar? No matter how hard GSP bent back his arm, Hardy wouldn’t quit. He’s known as a guy who simply doesn’t tap. To submit him, you must put him to sleep…or so we thought. Instead, Hardy surprised us all by awkwardly tapping after only a few seconds.
5. Hardy kept his job despite losing his fourth straight fight. In the UFC, three straight losses usually signal your demise in the UFC. Heck, these days, with all the mergers, even two losses can be enough to get you fired. But Dana White vowed to keep Dan Hardy after Sunday’s loss even though The Outlaw has now dropped four consecutive bouts because he likes guys who “war.”
Combining all the factors together paints a disturbing picture. Hardy appeared to abandon his gameplan and make life easy for the retiring Lytle, giving him all sorts of opportunities. The fight reeks of “do this favor for Lytle and we’ll make it worth your while.”