Mitch Ciccarelli Contributed to this Post

This weekend’s lineup for UFC 146 might feature a full slate of heavyweights on the PPV portion of the card but the show in general is stacked including some excellent undercard action on FX. One of the most-anticipated preliminary pairings is undoubtedly Duane Ludwig’s dance with Dan Hardy (23-10). Each has a reputation for favoring fights on their feet and finishing their foes, though each is also in need of a win after suffering submission stumbles in their previous efforts.

For Hardy the loss was his fourth straight, and while Ludwig (21-12) will certainly be looking to hand the Brit a fifth he won’t necessarily be happy about it beyond the satisfaction of a win in general.

“I’m a big fan of Dan Hardy’s and I support the UFC’s decision to keep him around,” said Ludwig on Rebellion MMA Radio. “With Hardy you are guaranteed to see a good exciting fight. In his first two losses in the UFC, he got out-wrestled by Georges St-Pierre and caught by Carlos Condit which can happen to anybody. His last fight was a Fight of the Night and he got caught so he’s always in exciting fights.”

With the stakes so high for Hardy there’s a possibility “The Outlaw” may attempt to work his ground-game against Ludwig who himself is a kickboxer by trade. If things do indeed unfold in such a manner Ludwig will be ready for it, approaching things in an open-minded way.

“On paper this matchup has great potential but we’ll see what happens. I know he’s been working a lot on his wrestling and jiu-jitsu quite a bit as well but I don’t really care what his gameplan is. I don’t know how much he’s going to want to stand up with me but we’ll see when the bell rings,” Ludwig explained on the possibility of Hardy playing it safe. “I just need to stay sharp and not get greedy.”

The first batch of UFC 146 prelims start at approximately 7:15 PM EST Saturday night. FX then takes over at 8:00 PM EST with four fights including Hardy-Ludwig, Jamie Varner-Edson Barboza, and C.B. Dollaway-Jason “Mayhem” Miller.

Fans can catch Rebellion MMA Radio every Sunday night at 6:30 PM EST. Check back regularly for upcoming guests.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Hardy recently elaborated on his growth in a telling interview with MMAWeekly where, in addition to revealing he’s had his love for MMA rekindled based on how little he has to lose right now, he credited his newfound friendship with Frank Mir as playing a major role in development since last taking to the cage.

“I’ve always been a huge fan of Frank. My first real encounter with Frank is when he fought Ian Freeman in London, and I know he came out with a loss in that fight, but he showed so much heart in that fight. At the time Ian Freeman was a beast, he was one of the best fighters in Europe, and I trained with him. I knew how good Ian Freeman was. So my respect for Frank shot up massively after that fight,” began Hardy on his unlikely association with the former UFC heavyweight champ. “Now I’m around him all the time. He’s just such a genuine, honest guy. He really cares about helping people, and that’s something that’s very rare in this sport. There are a lot of people, a lot of pretenders, a lot of people who say things and mean something else. Frank’s as genuine as they come.”

Based on what he’s picked up from Mir both as a trainer and mentor, Hardy’s passion has returned and with it, he feels, will be his winning ways.

“I was in the gym this morning and I was hitting pads and I feel like I’m being studious again. I feel like I’m learning again,” the appreciative 29-year old explained. “I’m exploring my potential as far as a striker goes, and then sparring. I’m already excited, I can’t wait to get back in the gym and get working. That’s not something I’ve felt for a long time.”

“I’m excited to show people what I can do now. I’m excited to show that I have been working,” he continued. “All those guys that Tweet ‘Oh you’ve got to work on your ground game, you’ve got to work on your wrestling,’ these guys don’t know what I’m doing every day. This is my opportunity to prove that I’m a whole new fighter.”

Hardy-Ludwig appears destined to cap off the FX/Fuel TV portion of the preliminary card. UFC 146 is set for May 26 in Las Vegas and headlined by Alistair Overeem attempting to dethrone heavyweight title-holder Junior dos Santos with four other heavyweight match-ups scheduled for the PPV including Mir mixing it up with Cain Velasquez for top contendership.

Hardy discussed his mindset in an interview with ESPN where he explained, “I’ve got the anger back that I used to have when I was at Cage Warriors, which is a good place to be because that’s when I enjoyed hurting people.”

“The Outlaw” rose to notoriety in the U.K. promotion, racking up 12-1 record under the CWFC banner. However, it was in part that success that led to his downfall in the UFC after his popularity prevented him from taking the necessary steps to keep improving as a fighter.

“I spent my whole career trying to get to the UFC, but then a lot of changes in my life, personal things and the media attention – it distracted me from being a Mixed Martial Artist,” admitted the 29-year old Hardy who went on to say his training suffered as a result.

With a new camp in place, as well as the humility of four straight stumbles, Hardy feels he’s made the necessary adjustments and expects the results to show on May 26 when he meets Ludwig inside the Octagon.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

The UFC confirmed the clash earlier today.

Hardy has been out of action since enduring his fourth straight stumble this past August when he was choked out by Chris Lytle at UFC Live 5. Prior to the defeat the 29-year old Brit had fallen to Anthony Johnson, Carlos Condit, and Georges St. Pierre. However, Hardy is only a few years removed from being a title-contender and holds a 23-10 record including victories over Akihiro Gono, Marcus Davis, and Mike Swick.

While the 21-12 Ludwig has found more success than Hardy as of late, “Bang” wasn’t so lucky against Josh Neer in January where his hopes of a three-fight streak in the right direction were laid to waste. Still, Ludwig remains a threat regardless of the situation, as sixteen of his wins have featured some form of finish.

The May 26 card is expected to feature a headlining bout between heavyweight champ Junior dos Santos and Alistair Overeem with other announced match-ups including Jason Miller vs. C.B. Dollaway and Paul Sass vs. Jacob Volkmann.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

“The Outlaw” was kept from being released by the UFC thanks to his willingness to go all-out each time he has fought, including a war with Chris Lytle in his last encounter. Hardy lost, adding to defeats at the hands of UFC welterweight champ Georges St. Pierre, Carlos Condit, and Anthony Johnson.

Hardy, however, has plans for his return to action, calling out UFC Hall of Fame fighter Matt Hughes, easily the most dominant welterweight title-holder in UFC history before GSP showed up.

“I’ve mentioned Matt Hughes to Lorenzo. He’s been on a rough streak as well recently, he’ll look at me and see I’ve lost four fights and think he can outwrestle me,” said Hardy, in a recent interview with ESPN. “I also genuinely don’t like him. I need a fight to get up for and I’d take great pleasure in smashing him in the face.”

Prior to dropping four in a row, Hardy had won seven consecutive fights to secure his shot at GSP and the UFC title. The Brit has no love for Hughes, saying, “It’s some knowledge I have about him away from the sport. Even students around where he lives bet against him.” Hardy refused to divulge any further information.

Hughes is currently still deciding if he even wants to fight again, having suffered a knockout loss to Josh Koscheck earlier this year. However, a little more trash-talk from a Brit with name value who is in a career free-fall could be enough to bring him back into the cage and provide him with an opportunity to retire on a high note.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

According to CEO Lorenzo Fertitta via Twitter, the 29-year old Brit saved his job by turning in an exciting performance, showing that style is nearly as important as substance when it comes to competing on the MMA’s biggest stage.

“Will not cut Hardy…I like guys that war,” wrote Fertitta on the popular social networking outlet.

Hardy started his UFC career off with a quartet of wins including victories over Marcus Davis and Mike Swick but hasn’t had his hands raised in nearly two years with defeats to Georges St. Pierre, Carlos Condit, Anthony Johnson, and most recently Lytle. He holds an overall record of 23-10 with eleven TKOs.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

All four men spoke to media today through a conference call about their upcoming bouts and Five Ounces of Pain was on the line plucking out interesting soundbytes and other relevant nuggets of information.

Read below and find out whether or not the 170ers plan to keep things standing the entire time, how Henderson feels his BJJ matches up with Miller’s high-level grappling ability, and more!

Chris Lytle:

- Is expecting a great fight against Hardy
- Even a dominant win over Hardy won’t change his interest in eventually running for political office
- Considers himself a “nomad” when it comes to training rather than staying at one specific location / Doesn’t have time to open his own gym with family duties and a full-time job as a firefighter
- Joked that he’s hoping to hurt Hardy’s hand with his “thick skull” and jokes that Matt Mitrione has helped him with that
- Explains that the UFC put him/Hardy in the main event for a reason and it’s going to be an exciting fight, no “dry humping”

Dan Hardy:

- His move to Las Vegas has been smooth and he feels this has been his best training camp yet / Felt he needed to take himself out of his comfort zone / Has been sparring at various gyms including ring-time with Evan Dunham and Gilbert Yvel
- “I feel I’ve made a lot of improvements overt the past four weeks. I’m seeing improvements myself and hearing the same from other people. Regardless of where the fight goes I’m ready for it and I want the opportunity to show people what I can do.”
- Says he learned a lot from the GSP fight and blames his own arrogance for the loss to Carlos Condit
- Acknowledges the additional pressure from having lost three in a row but won’t focus on it too much / “I love being part of the UFC – part of this sport, part of this world. Yeah, there’s definitely pressure but I’ve gotta kinda go with the flow. I can’t force it too much. If I think about it too much it’s going to bring me down.”
- “I just don’t like having boring fights. I want to have fun fights and for me Chris Lytle is the kind of guy I look up to, the kind of guy I want to fight like. Fighting him is an honor. I know he’s gonna bring it, he’s gonna test me, and he’s gonna try and win the fight. And that’s exactly what I want.”
- Has changed his look for the fight to get a “fresh start”
- Was annoyed by Anthony Johnson’s decision to impose his wrestling after promising to stand but isn’t concerned about that being the case with Lytle

Ben Henderson:

- Isn’t thinking about any contendership implications
- Won’t take the fight personally with Miller, who had dissed WEC lightweights, but remembers the quote
- Says it’s the biggest fight of his career
- “The UFC has the toughest 155 pounders in the world and I’m excited to be here, to showcase the things that I do.”
- Has no idea what’s next for him after UFC Live 5 and doesn’t really care / “If you’re on the right track and you get your hand raised that’s all that really matters.”
- Feels they have similar styles and expects it to either be a fifteen minute war on the ground or a stand-up battle if their grappling neutralizes the other’s

Jim Miller:

- Like Henderson, Miller also isn’t looking beyond next weekend or at a potential title-fights in the future
- “I want a tough road. I want to fight all the best guys.”
- Thinks the WEC guys have won as many as they’ve lost and the biggest win they’ve had was Henderson’s win over Mark Bocek / Felt some WEC lightweights were disrespectful to the UFC’s 155ers
- Has not been told that if he beats Henderson he’ll get a shot at the belt

According to statement on the UFC’s website, Hardy will meet Chris Lytle on August 14 as part of UFC Live 5 on the Versus Network.

The Indianapolis firefighter is without question an apt grappler as indicated by the twenty-one submission wins on his record but has never shied away from engaging in heated exchanges with his adversaries while standing. His battle with Ebersole was good enough to earn “Fight of the Night” honors, the eighth event-specific bonus in Lytle’s UFC career. After the bout it was reported that Lytle had torn the meniscus in his right knee removed and was considering retirement. Apparently he’s put those plans on hold in order to trade leather with Hardy in August.

While only three of Lytle’s thirty total wins are TKOs with the last coming three years ago, the 36-year old is a former boxer who compiled a 13-1-1 record in the sweet science and has yet to be knocked out in a 50+ fight MMA career including bouts against talented strikers like Thiago Alves, Nick Diaz, and Robbie Lawler. Additionally, he holds past wins over respected competitors Kazuo Misaki and Matt Serra among others.

Regardless of where the fight actually ends up taking place it should not only be fast-paced and fun given the stylistic pairing but one with more on the line than simply a win, as Lytle is coming off a loss to Brian Ebersole at UFC 127 and Hardy has fallen in three straight after starting out his UFC career with four consecutive victories.

“The Outlaw” holds an overall record of 23-9 with in-ring success against Marcus Davis, Akihiro Gono, and Mike Swick but went winless in 2010 after suffering one-sided outpointing by 170-pound champion Georges St. Pierre and the first knockout of his career against Carlos Condit before running into Johnson at UFN 24.

UFC Live 5 will also feature a recently announced bout between former WEC lightweight champ Ben Henderson and top 155-pound contender Jim Miller as well as still-green Ultimate Fighter Season 7 winner Amir Sadollah continuing his growth by taking on hard-hitting veteran Duane Ludwig and original TUF finalist Stephan Bonnar in action against 8-1 Karlos Vemola.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

According to MMAFighting, the 26-year old has accepted a scrap with colorful Brit Dan Hardy for March 2011 at a yet-to-be-announced event with Hardy’s camp agreeing to the match-up as well.

Johnson was considered to be the future of the welterweight division after knocking out five foes in the UFC but has seen his reputation tarnished with the year-long break and related weight-gain after falling to Koscheck at UFC 106, as well as a few stumbles in the cage such as a TKO loss on the heels of an illegal eye-poke to Kevin Burns and a submission defeat to Rich Clementi in a bout he took on late notice. However, he holds wins over Luigi Fioravanti and Yoshiyuki Yoshida and remains a constant threat to any adversary based on his underrated wrestling, athleticism, and powerful striking.

In the form of Hardy, “Rumble” will be taking on an opponent comparable to Koscheck as far as in-ring success as well as an individual hungry for a win after dropping back-to-back fights. The Nottingham native is coming off a knockout loss to Carlos Condit – the first TKO of his career – in addition to being thoroughly out-pointed by GSP at UFC 111 but holds 23-8 overall record with victories over Mike Swick, Marcus Davis, and Akihiro Gono.

While three events are currently linked to March of next year, the specific card targeted for Hardy vs. Davis is Fight Night 24 on March 26. The show is scheduled for Seattle and also has a bout between Tito Ortiz and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira attached to the headlining slot.

Does Randy Couture Have One Last Run at the Title in Him? (Versus.com)

Dana White Backtracks on Jon Fitch’s Contendership (WatchKalibRun.com)

Kamal Shalorus May Be Fighting Bart Palaszweski at WEC 52 (Heavy.com)

Ken Florian and Dan Hardy Take Differing Viewpoints on Wrestling in MMA (MMAFighting.com)

A TUF 12 Preview (CagePotato.com)

EA Sports MMA Will be Available to Play on the IPhone (MiddleEasy.com)

Bibiano Fernandes Finally Receives Payment for DREAM 13 Performance (MMAConvert.com)

European Stars Look Sharp at Shooto Event in Switzerland (FIGHT! Magazine)

Georges St. Pierre Comments on Josh Koscheck’s Pre-Fight Trash Talk (MMAScraps.com)

It now looks like UFC 111 could be the event the two end up locking up according to a recent report over at MMAFanhouse.

According to the report, UFC 111 is expected to take place in March from the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.

St. Pierre would be making his first return to the Octagon since suffering a groin injury in his successful title defense over Thiago Alves during UFC 100, while Hardy would be returning to action off of his most recent victory over Swick at UFC 106.

“I know there’s somebody here that thinks he’s the number one contender. He thinks he’s the number one contender, and I don’t think he’s fought anybody, and he’s sitting right over there and his name is Dan Hardy,” exclaimed Koscheck following his submission victory over Anthony Johnson this past Saturday. “He hasn’t fought anyone like me, guaranteed. I’m the number one contender in this weight division.”

In a conversation with our friends over at Fight! Magazine, Hardy compared Koscheck’s career in the UFC to….. I’ll allow Dan to explain.

“The thing I’ve realized about Josh Koscheck is that he’s kind of like a turd that won’t flush away,” said Hardy. “He kind of wins a fight, and you think he’s doing alright. Then he loses a fight and you think he’s done, and then he wins a fight. He’s always kind of floating around and he never really does anything.

“He thinks he deserves a shot as GSP but I think he’s 3-2 in his last five fights, so he’s not really in a position to be calling for a title shot.

“The guy’s just a bit of a dick. I never get bored watching hm get punched in the face though, so that’s always a bonus to see him keep fighting.”

When asked if he would be confident if a fight between himself and Koscheck should come up at some point in the future, Hardy explained, “Yeah, I’m very confident. I’m confident I’d be able to do pretty much what I like in that fight and he still wouldn’t be able to win.”

It seems inevitable that these two will settle their differences the old fashioned way, but for now Hardy has bigger fish to fry.

Just once I’d like to see the welterweight champ display a little edginess, get fired up about something. Anderson Silva is the same way but he can get away with it because he doesn’t do interviews except through a translator and that tends to water down any emotion or attitude in what’s being said.

GSP needs to put away his playbook, go off-script and get excited about something. If he did that, if he gave a few quotes that were memorable, that were perhaps slightly out of character, that showed he possesses a full range of emotions, that he has feelings, a sense of freaking humour, his superstar status would rise even higher.

Think about it. Muhammad Ali is as well-known for his poetic way with words as he is for the rope-a-dope or the Thrilla in Manilla or any of his other classic battles. Michael Jordan wasn’t above a little trash talking and he’s one of the greatest – if not the greatest – sports brands in history, with clothing, movies, cologne, you name it. Likewise, Tiger Woods became a whole lot more interesting, especially to the casual golf fan, on those occasions when he’s lost his temper and snapped a three-iron over his knee. Nobody thinks less of him for those occasional outbursts because of how he carries himself the other 99 percent of the time. We actually think more of him in a way because it shows he’s just like us, someone who gets frustrated and angry when things don’t go his way when they should. It shows he’s fallible and human.

Now, I’m not saying GSP should turn heel and start putting his finger in the chest of a defeated opponent or that he needs to start cursing and swearing and bad-mouthing his opponents. His sportsmanlike respect for his opponents is refreshing for a fighter, but he goes out of his way to be nice and it’s starting to come across as farcical, especially when – a Matt Serra-like puncher’s chance aside – not everybody who steps in against him has a hope in hell of beating him.

Which brings me to his next fight, against Dan Hardy. Here’s a fighter that GSP could actually learn something from. Not in the cage, of course. But Hardy brings an energy, an attitude, a personality to the game. He gave a runner-up trophy to Mike Swick at the UFC 105 pre-fight press conference, for crying out loud. That’s funny. That he beat Swick makes it even funnier. Hopefully, Hardy won’t be intimidated by GSP and will continue to bring a bit of sideshow fun to the lead-up to their title fight. I’d love to see him give GSP a second-place trophy and maybe it would encourage GSP to come out of shell a little bit and remember to have some fun. Unfortunately, if the look of horror that briefly crossed Hardy’s face when GSP was introduced into the octagon after the Swick fight is any indication, Hardy might start to act a bit more like GSP, and that would be too bad because being Dan Hardy is about all Hardy has going for him right now.

According to a recent report on the Telegraph.co.uk, Georges St. Pierre could be coaching opposite Hardy on TUF 11, as both men are currently being considered to fill the spots.

If the report is correct, the show would likely help to build their upcoming welterweight title clash at a yet to be determined date.

“I’d fight him [GSP] in Canada, Las Vegas, England, on the moon, or in the car park,” explained Hardy. “I want that belt.

“I have all the skills to cause him a lot of problems, and he is only human. He’s a great athlete very good at winning and putting together a gameplan; but he is not a fighter like me. And I’m going to get in there and my intention is to hurt him, put a beating on him. In a 25 minute fight, it’s a long time to keep my hands off his chin.”

Hardy was impressive this evening as he forced the action and imposed his will on Swick in the clinch, as well as during the exchanges, to come away with the most pivotal victory of his career in front of his hometown fans in England.

St. Pierre was on hand at the bout’s conclusion to extend Hardy his congratulations on the victory, and to promote the bout that Mike Goldberg confirmed at the conclusion of the Hardy vs. Swick clash.

There is no news currently available as to when St. Pierre vs. Hardy will be scheduled for, but stay tuned to FiveOuncesofPain.com as we keep you up to date on the match-up specifics.

The plans of the bout were recently confirmed through UFC president Dana White.

Although no confirmed date has been announced, speculation is that the two will meet on the November 14th card Hardy was initially scheduled for against Dong Hyum Kim.

Swick has been impressive since moving down to welterweight, compiling a 4-0 record during that time, with notable wins over Ben Saunders and Marcus Davis.

Hardy, who has been equally impressive, is riding a six-fight win streak, with a 3-0 record since joining the UFC. His most recent wins came over Rory Markham via KO, and Marcus Davis by split-decision.

UFC 105 is scheduled for November 14th, from Manchester England, with a headlined match-up between Randy Couture vs. Brandon Vera

According to a recent report from the Fighters Only Magazine official website, the Korean fighter has verbally accepted the match up.

Dan “The Outlaw” Hardy (22-6), is 3-0 in the UFC with wins over Akihiro Gono, Rory Markham, and most-recently, Marcus Davis.

Dong Hyun “Stun Gun” Kim (12-0-1) has put together Octagon victories over Jason Tan and Matt Brown before suffering a split decision loss to Karo Parisyan. A defeat that was then changed to a no contest after Parisyan tested positive for banned painkillers.

UFC 105 is expected to air in November from Manchester England, with a rumored main event headlined by BJ Penn vs. Diego Sanchez, for the lightweight title.

Up to this point he majority of the trash talk has been flung in The Irish Hand Grenade’s direction courtesy of the U.K.’s Outlaw, however, Davis took the opportunity to make his feelings on his opponent at UFC 99 quite clear in his recent blog.

The heavy handed slugger from Maine’s words speak for themselves so without further ado, let’s roll the tape. Here are some of the choice words that Davis had about Hardy and their upcoming showdown on June 13.

“I hate Dan Hardy,” confirmed Davis as if there was any doubt.

“I really can’t stand this guy and I am counting down to days to June 13, to the Lanxess Arena in when I can smash this kid in the mouth,” he continued. “I want to punch holes in this guy’s face. Hardy has gone so far beyond what is professional. This is more than another fight in the UFC for me, more than getting a win and working towards getting a title shot. This is war.

“Like the little coward he is, he’s done all his smack talk from behind his keyboard like a 14 year old living in his mom’s basement.

“He asked people to photoshop pictures of me and put them on forums, and some of them were really disgusting. Come on, this stuff can get back to my kids. This doesn’t sell a fight; it is just disrespectful and personally offensive. Do rivals in any other business photoshop pictures of guys they are up against? Hardy is like a 12 year old keyboard warrior, and he’s about as good in the Octagon too.

“For a guy who has been in the UFC for five minutes, he’s got a big mouth like he’s some sort of Hall of Famer. And he’s had two fights in the UFC. Wow. Hardy thinks he’s talking for the UK fans, but I question that. He’s a loudmouth, a complete attention whore. He’s the kinda guy who’d sit at a funeral and be all angry because he doesn’t get to be the corpse.

“He’s disrespected my heritage as an Irish-American, saying it is a gimmick to get myself noticed. Gimmick? I’m proud of where my family comes from, and anyone who saw me after my wins in Belfast and Dublin knows how genuine my feelings and respect are for Ireland.

“Gimmick? What do you call having a metrosexual, red and black dyed Mohawk and wearing a bandit mask on the way to the Octagon to hide your ugly teeth! That’s a gimmick.

“Finally, I want to address Hardy directly: Hardy, you disrespectful punk, all this crap you’ve been talking hasn’t had the affect you wanted it to. I’m not going into this fight all crazy, swinging wild to give you any kind of chance you know you’ll need to have a prayer of beating me.

“The only other person I genuinely hated going into a fight was Jess Liaudin, who talked a lot of crap before our fight at UFC 80. And he got knocked stone cold for his disrespect and wasn’t heard from again.

“All this BS has done has put pressure on you to back up all this talk. You keep saying you are having fun talking all this crap, but your fun time ends in two weeks.”

A war of words has been heating up between the two since the fight was announced in scores of interviews done by both men leading into the bout. The most of harsh of which have come in the form of their official blogs leading into the fight available at UFC.com.

Although Hardy has made an effort to train with famed boxing trainer Freddie Roach at his Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles leading into the grudge match with Davis, he is adamant that the decision to sharpen up on his boxing has nothing to do with his rival’s history as a professional boxer. According to Hardy, he’s not overly impressed with the hands of Davis to say the least.

“To be honest, I don’t even think Davis’ hands are the most dangerous things he brings to the fight,” Hardy was quoted as saying in his official blog. “I don’t think he’s as good a boxer as people make him out to be.

“He started boxing at a very light weight and it’s very hard to carry that skill as you move up in weight and bulk up. You see that with a lot of professional boxers who move up through the weights. Aside from a few notable exceptions, most pro boxers reduce as fighters as they move up in weight. It’s normally a tactic employed by an old guy or someone who has just lost a fight.

“Let’s be honest, if Marcus Davis was so good at boxing he’d still be doing it now.

“He’s got a good pro boxing record on paper, but when you take the time to look into his record and see the guys he was facing, it’s no longer so impressive. It was a very padded record, compiled mostly against guys in Massachusetts or Maine.”

FiveOuncesOfPain.com learned of the matches formal scheduling for the event from a source close to the fight.

The war of words began soon after Hardy’s first round knockout victory over Rory Markham during last month’s UFC 95 event in London, England.

During a post-fight press conference for the event, Hardy called into question Davis’ penchant for playing up his Irish roots.

“… He’s had a couple of fights in the UK, and he’s kind of building himself a fan base, but he’s not English; he’s not Irish,” said Hardy. “I was born here, and I’ve been bred here. I don’t mind taking on that challenge and showing him this is my home and not his.”

Davis responded to the comments in an exclusive interview with MMAjunkie.com and stated that he’s tired of his tribute to his Irish heritage being constantly called into question.

“I’m getting sick and tired of everyone saying I’m a fake Irishman or a fake this and fake that,” he told Junkie. “I never told anybody I was an Irishman. What I am is proud of my heritage, which is Irish, Welsh and Scottish.

“It’s OK for Oscar De La Hoya, who wasn’t born in Mexico, to embrace his Mexican heritage. Or it’s OK for all the African-Americans here in America to embrace their African heritage. But if you’re a white guy and you embrace any of your European heritage, you’re an idiot.”

Never one to back down from a challenge, Davis didn’t hesitate to campaign for the fight.

“I went up to (UFC matchmaker) Joe Silva and I said, ‘Joe, make this fight,’ he said. “I want this fight. This kid’s running his mouth.’”

It appears Davis’ stumping paid off, as sources indicate that the UFC was originally planning to make a match at UFC 99 involving Davis and welterweight prospect Ben Saunders. However, the public feud caused the promotion to change directions. Saunders will instead face Mike Swick at UFC 99 while Davis and Hardy will get a chance to settle their differences on the same card.

UFC 99 will emanate from the Lanxess Arena and will feature former PRIDE middleweight champion Wanderlei Silva taking on former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin.

In addition to the main event and the welterweight matches between Davis vs. Hardy and Swick vs. Saunders, other reported matchups include Caol Uno vs. Spencer Fisher, Cain Velasquez vs. Heath Herring, Alessio Sakara vs. Alan Belcher, Stefan Struve vs. Denis Stojnic, Paul Taylor vs. Peter Sobotta, and Todd Duffee vs. Mustapha al Turk.