Dan Hardy gets one more UFC bout against Duane "Bang" Ludwig at UFC 146

By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

Though he lost his fourth straight fight last summer, Dan Hardy was nevertheless assured by UFC brass that he would get at least one more fight in the Octagon. The English fighter decided to take some time off, and said he wouldn't return until he felt he was ready to compete at 100%.

That time may be now, as MMAJunkie.com reports that he'll take on Duane "Bang" Ludwig at UFC 146 in Las Vegas this May.

Hardy worked his way to a shot at the UFC Welterweight Championship with four straight wins in the UFC. However, after losing a decision to Georges St-Pierre, he was then knocked out by Carlos Condit, decisioned by Anthony "Rumble" Johnson, and then submitted by Chris Lytle.

Ludwig had a two-fight winning streak snapped in January, losing by submission to Josh Neer at UFC on FX 1. He's now 2-3 in five fights in his latest stretch in the UFC.

UFC 146 takes place Memorial Day Weekend, headlined by the UFC Heavyweight Championship bout between Alistair Overeem and Junior dos Santos

Penick's Analysis: Hardy has been very fortunate in his UFC career, and he's getting another chance at getting on the road to redemption in this fight. He had really poor showings against Johnson and Lytle, and he'll need to be much better to stave off a fifth straight loss here in this fight. For Ludwig, a loss here could potentially send him out of the organization as well, as he'd be just 2-4 in his last six. This is a must-win fight for both of them, and perhaps that will boost its quality.

[Dan Hardy art by Cory Gould (c) MMATorch.com]

Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/UFC_2/article_12573.shtml

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