("What in the bloody hell? That’s my victory pose, you wanker.")
A welterweight bout between Dan Hardy and Anthony Johnson has been verbally agreed to for March, however it isn’t clear which of the four events that month the fight will happen at.
Cagepotato.com learned of the bout from a source close to one of the fighters Sunday afternoon, but MMAFighting.com was the first to report the story.
An erroneous report surfaced earlier in the day yesterday that stated that the bout would happen at UFC 129 in Toronto, but according to our source, the Canadian date was not offered, but it could happen on one of the three other planned cards. UFC on Versus 3 is penciled in for March 3 in Louisville, Kentucky, an event is reportedly being planned for an undisclosed location for March 19 and Ultimate Fight Night 24 is slated for March 26 in Seattle.
0-2 in his previous two outings, Hardy, (23-8 1 NC) needs a win and Johnson isn’t known to give one up easily. It’s unlikely that the Nottingham, England native will face the axe if he loses the fight, even thought he will have lost three in a row, considering the level of competition he has faced. "The Outlaw’s" seven-fight winning streak was snapped by UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre who rode the Brit to a five round decision in March at UFC 111 before suffering his first knockout loss of his career at the hands of former WEC welterweight champ Carlos Condit at UFC 120 in October.
Hopefully Johnson can make 170 for the bout.
It’s no secret that the massive welterweight has struggled with making weight in the past and since undergoing knee surgery earlier this year, "Rumble," who hasn’t fought since his November 2009 loss to Josh Koscheck at UFC 106 ballooned up to 230 pounds due to inactivity.
Johnson (8-3) told hosts Kenny Rice and Bas Rutten on during an episode of Inside MMA earlier this year that he has dropped a similar amount of weight in the past and that, "It ain’t no thang," and that he had no plans of moving to middleweight.
("I swear, I’m AJ. If you don’t believe me we could grapple.")
(Ingesting nothing but water and toilet paper makes AJ a skinny man.)
Unless he has Mike Dolce in his camp, dropping 60 pounds in three months will be no easy feat. If he doesn’t make weight this time around, expect Dana White to put on his angry face when he tells Ariel Helwani that he’s pissed and that AJ will now be fighting at middleweight.
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11 matches 8 wins 3 losses
By knockout 6 1
By submission 0 2
By decision 2 0
Date Result Record Opponent Event Method Round Time Location Notes
March 26, 2011 Dan Hardy UFC Fight Night 24 Seattle, Washington, USA
November 21, 2009 Loss 8–3 Josh Koscheck UFC 106: Ortiz vs Griffin 2 Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) 2 4:47 Las Vegas, Nevada Won Fight of the Night Honors
October 24, 2009 Win 8–2 Yoshiyuki Yoshida UFC 104: Machida vs. Shogun KO (Punch) 1 0:41 Los Angeles, California, US Catchweight 176 lb.
February 7, 2009 Win 7–2 Luigi Fioravanti UFC Fight Night: Lauzon vs. Stephens TKO (Punches) 1 4:39 Tampa, Florida, US
December 13, 2008 Win 6–2 Kevin Burns UFC: The Ultimate Finale 8 KO (Head Kick) 3 0:28 Las Vegas, Nevada, US Won Knockout of the Night Honors
July 19, 2008 Loss 5–2 Kevin Burns UFC: Silva vs. Irvin TKO (Eye Poke) 3 3:45 Las Vegas, Nevada, US Burns accidentally poked Johnson in the eye, rendering him unable to continue. Burns was awarded the TKO victory.
April 2, 2008 Win 5–1 Tommy Speer UFC Fight Night 13 KO (Punches) 1 0:51 Broomfield, Colorado, US
September 22, 2007 Loss 4–1 Rich Clementi UFC 76: Knockout Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) 2 3:05 Anaheim, California, US Catchweight of 177.5 lb.
June 12, 2007 Win 4–0 Chad Reiner UFC Fight Night 10 KO (Punches) 1 0:13 Hollywood, Florida, US
September 16, 2006 Win 3–0 Keith Wilson Rocky Mountain Nationals: Demolition Decision (Split) 3 5:00 Denver, Colorado
September 16, 2006 Win 2–0 Rich Moskowitz Rocky Mountain Nationals: Demolition Decision (Unanimous) 3 5:00 Denver, Colorado
August 16, 2006 Win 1–0 Jonathan Romero Pangea Fights 2: Tinsel Town Battle TKO (Punches) 1 1:09 Hollywood, California
7 wins at 170 lbs. 1 win at 176 lbs. 1 loss at 177.5 lbs then 1 by poke in eye and Kos. Rich Clementi UFC 76 fight was a short notice fight and couldnt make weight. Burns poked Johnson in eye ( we all no that bullshit call ) shouldnt have been a loss to Johnson. And the Kos Fight... October 24, 2009 Yoshiyuki Yoshida, November 21, 2009 Josh Koscheck *One month*. Johnson WILL make weight and WIN.