Greg Hardy is getting his first top 10 opponent, No. 7 contender Alexander Volkov, just 18 days after his controversial No Contest finish at UFC Boston. Hardy is standing in as a last-minute replacement for Junior Dos Santos.
“This was Greg’s idea,” Hardy’s manager, Malki Kawa, told ESPN. “He trains with Junior Dos Santos at American Top Team and saw that he was sick. He called me up and asked what I thought about him fighting Volkov. I actually didn’t like the fight for him. I thought maybe it was too soon, but Greg wants to step up in competition. He thinks he can go to Moscow and knock him out, and he wanted to help the promotion, which is exactly what he did.”
It was only last weekend Hardy’s first decision win, a three-round bout against Ben Sosoli, was overturned after Hardy used an inhaler inside the Octagon during the second and third rounds. Hardy’s team believed the use of the medical device was authorized because the USADA knew Hardy used one, but the Massachusetts State Athletic Commission, who regulated the bout, had not approved the inhaler use.
Dos Santos vs. Volkov was originally scheduled to headline the event. Instead the featherweight fight between Zabit Magomedsharipov and Calvin Kattar will be the three-round main event, with Volkov vs. Hardy as the co-main.
Critics of the former NFL All-Pro think he lacks the stamina and experience to face a true heavyweight contender. As a former champion with Bellator, Volkov is definitely the toughest opponent Hardy has faced to date. Will he rise to the challenge?
