Dan Hardy: Is It Time for "The Outlaw" To Ride Off into the Sunset?

The typical mantra in the UFC is three strikes and you're out.

This idea doesn't seem to hold for Dan Hardy, who is coming off consecutive losses to Georges St-Pierre, Carlos Condit and Anthony Johnson.

"Not necessarily," UFC President Dana White responded to MMAJunkie.com when asked if Hardy would be given the pink slip. "We'll have to wait and see. I [expletive] love that kid."

There is an undying charisma surrounding Hardy that attracts viewers all over the world. Along with his trademark Mohawk and face-wrapped bandana, Hardy brings a rare level of energy to every fight he's apart of.

He's known for his aggressive style and knack for dishing out punishment on the feet. His pre- and post-fight interviews are always clever and witty.

With all of the hype, a casual fan would believe Hardy is a top welterweight contender, but unfortunately, the facts tell a completely different story.

Before challenging Georges St. Pierre for the UFC Welterweight Title, Hardy was coming off a KO win over Rory Markham, a unanimous decision victory over Mike Swick, and two split decision victories over Marcus Davis and Akihiro Gono.

All of those fighters are respectable veterans, but none of them have ever really been considered top-10 welterweights.

How did Hardy secure a title shot with virtually no wins over ranked competition?

St-Pierre's dominance in the welterweight division is the likely answer.

With such few fresh faces to use as contenders, the UFC opted to go with Hardy, a move that subsequently turned the flamboyant Brit into a star.

Despite St. Pierre's destruction of just about every world-class welterweight, many fans bought into Hardy's everlasting confidence.

At any second, Hardy, who some considered a world-class striker, could land that one punch that separates St-Pierre from consciousness.

It didn't matter that Hardy had only one KO victory in his UFC career. Fans even overlooked the fact that Hardy's highlight reel played that same KO over and over from multiple angles.

This isn't an attempt to discount Hardy's boxing prowess. He's a solid striker with 11 KO stoppages under his belt.

In the championship bout with St. Pierre, Hardy was kept on his back and routed for the unanimous decision. He put forth a gutsy performance and left the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey with more fans than he came in with.

Condit was Hardy's next chance at elite level opposition, but the Brit's quest for redemption was quickly denied by a massive left hook in the first round.

Against Johnson, most expected the fight to play out on the feet, but "Rumble" chose to utilize his underrated wrestling to control Hardy and grind out the unanimous decision.

This brings us to the most important question: Should the UFC hand Hardy his walking papers?

The fair thing would be to release Hardy from his UFC contract. Former middleweight title contender Patrick Cote was recently released after an 0-3 skid in the promotion, and he is every bit as exciting as Hardy.

Still, one can't be completely sure about the full circumstances surrounding Cote's dismissal. We can only speculate on the three losses being the only reason.

With that said, Hardy should be given another chance. The sport is ultimately about the fans, and Hardy is a familiar face that fans generally enjoy watching compete.

There are still a plethora of interesting opponents for the Brit including Chris Lytle, John Howard and Thiago Alves.

If not the UFC, Strikeforce could be an attractive destination for Hardy. He could compete against the likes of Nick Diaz, K.J. Noons and Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos.

Are you still interested in seeing Hardy fight, or should the UFC release "The Outlaw" and watch him ride off into the sunset?

(SportsHaze.com Original)

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