Hardy Defeats Swick, Earns Shot at GSP
The tension was clearly visible at the beginning of the matchup between welterweight contenders Dan Hardy and Mike Swick. With a possible title shot against George St. Pierre, the fighters stared each other down and refused to touch gloves to start the fight. That early tension carried out through the fight, with Dan Hardy pulling out a hard-fought unanimous decision of 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28.
Swick (14-3), a former middleweight that recently dropped to the welterweight class, dictated the action for most of the first round. It was clear for early on Swick’s focus was to make the fight a grappling affair, working the clinch and backing Hardy (23-6) into the cage wall. The fighters spent most of the round trading advantage position along the cage wall without delivering much damage to each other.
Hardy changed the momentum quickly to start the second round, landing a heavy right that stunned Swick and buckled him backward. Hardy grabbed for a clinch and fired away with a flurry of hard strikes to the head and body. Hardy landed a snapping uppercut before moving back to the center. Swick was able to landed some nice counters lefts, but Hardy ended the round with a few solid strikes to win a convincing round.
As the third and final round began, the body blows delivered by Hardy appeared to have taken their toll on Swick. Hardy outgunned the man known as “Quick”, landing a series of blows that stunned Swick once again. Hardy then took the fight to the mat and landed some hard blows before being put back on their feet by the referee. Hardy didn’t let up, going on the offensive with a series of blows to close out the round and take the bout.
With George St. Pierre in attendance, the upcoming championship bout appears set for 2010 as the fighters met in the cage during after fight interviews to begin promoting the fight.
Tags: dan hardy, mike swick, mixed martial arts, mma, ufc
