Dan Hardy addresses the MMA community after his partial departure from the UFC and BT Sport
Dan Hardy has expressed his gratitude towards the MMA community after an outpouring of support was directed towards him following his partial departure from the UFC and BT Sport.
Hardy took to his official Twitter account and sent a tweet where he thanked the MMA community for their support.
Dan Hardy’s tweet read as follows:
“You lot are just awesome. Thank you so much for all of the kind words and support. You’ve really lifted my spirits, and reaffirmed my faith in the #MMA community. I’m grateful for all of you. My extended #MMAFamily #OnwardsAndUpwards #ForTheLoveOfMMA”
Although Dan Hardy won’t be working with the UFC and BT Sport directly anymore, he’s reportedly still under contract with the UFC as a fighter. Hardy hasn’t competed in a professional MMA bout since September 2012 when he defeated Amir Sadollah via unanimous decision.
Following his fight with Sadollah, Dan Hardy was scheduled to fight Matt Brown in April 2013. However, Hardy was diagnosed with a heart condition, Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome (WPWS), in 2013. Due to this health issue, Hardy stepped away from professional Mixed Martial Arts competition.
Despite having been retired from the sport for almost a decade, Dan Hardy recently took to social media and asserted that he’d like to return to active MMA competition once again. In fact, Hardy also revealed that he has often spoken to UFC president Dana White about possibly fighting in the UFC again.
Nevertheless, as noted by Dan Hardy, Dana White seemingly isn’t interested in permitting Hardy to return to the octagon as a fighter. Furthermore, as of this time, Dan Hardy won’t be directly working with the UFC or BT Sport any longer.
Dan Hardy was released from his role in the UFC and BT Sport due to a disagreement with a fellow employee
The MMA world was recently set abuzz with speculation regarding Dan Hardy being released from his role as a commentator and analyst by the UFC and BT Sport. This was allegedly due to a disagreement between Hardy and a female employee on UFC Fight Island in Abu Dhabi.
This news was initially reported by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter and later reiterated by various media outlets. Hardy took to Twitter to respond to these reports and suggested that some of the reports and their headlines, in particular, were misleading and inaccurate. Hardy stated:
“Rather misleading headline there, @bjpenndotcom. Not entirely accurate either. I am no longer working directly with the UFC. The ‘female’ part is irrelevant. It was a disagreement over an opportunity missed, or withheld, and I’d love some answers but can’t get any.”
Additional details on Dan Hardy’s partial departure from the UFC and BT Sport and his future with the UFC are expected to be revealed in the days ahead.