Heavyweights
Greg Hardy (3-0) vs. Allen Crowder (9-3)ODDS: Hardy (-525), Crowder (+415)
The UFC is promoting Hardy thanks to his notoriety, but unfortunately, that notoriety comes from the domestic violence incidents that essentially forced him out of the NFL.
Hardy getting a second chance via a profession that makes him more efficient at damaging people is tone-deaf enough, but the UFC also chose to book his debut as a co-main event on a card where one of the other prominent fights features Rachael Ostovich, who is coming back from being a victim of a domestic violence incident of her own.
If it was not for all the outside-of-the-cage stuff, Hardy would be an excellent prospect thanks to his athleticism and power, even if it is all currently just unchecked aggression. That will probably be enough to beat Crowder, a North Carolina native who has some solid wrestling and is a decent enough low-level UFC heavyweight. If he can survive Hardy’s early onslaught, it is easy to see him winning the last two rounds of the fight in an ugly grind, as Hardy has yet to have a fight last over a minute. However, Crowder probably cannot survive. The pick is Hardy via first-round knockout, as the show will unfortunately go on.
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