Greg Hardy took a beating in the 17th round of a Team Combat League fight on Friday night.
He couldn’t withstand a blow from Alexander Flores, suffering a brutal knockout in his first loss in three fights since joining the Dallas Enforcers.
Hardy, a former NFL defensive end whose controversial NFL career with the Panthers and Cowboys spiraled following domestic violence allegations and a cocaine possession arrest, has transitioned to a fighting career following his final football snap in January 2016, which led to a UFC contract in 2018 that has since expired.
In his Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship debut in February, Hardy suffered an awful knockout, and he encountered a similar ending Friday night.
“Win some you lose some,” Hardy wrote on Instagram following the Team Combat League knockout. “I got sloppy looking for a knockout.
“Forgot to fight my fight and paid the price against a good boxer. More to learn.”
Flores’ left hand appeared to make contact with Hardy early in the 17th round, causing him to fall to the ground as Flores retreated and reset.
Then, the 34-year-old tried to take control and land a punch on Flores, but the latter eventually backed him up to the ropes and landed another punch that resulted in the knockout.
Three months earlier, at the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship in February, Hardy was knocked out in the second round by Josh Watson about 13 months after he lost three consecutive UFC fights — including one in the first round against Moldovan Serghei Spivac.
The Panthers selected Hardy in the sixth round of the 2010 NFL Draft, and he made the Pro Bowl in 2013 following a season where he compiled 15 sacks.
But Hardy was convicted of assaulting an ex-girlfriend in 2014, and disturbing photos were released of the alleged incident
But when Hardy appealed, and the victim wasn’t present at the hearing, the charges were dismissed and expunged.
Still, the NFL suspended him for the first four games of the 2015 season, which he played for the Cowboys when the Panthers decided not to bring him back.
Hardy finished his NFL career with 238 tackles and 40 sacks.
