Heather Hardy accumulated a 20-0 professional boxing record and won a WBC title along the way, so when she announced her transition into mixed martial arts fight fans were expecting her to show off her hands.
That’s exactly what happened at Bellator 180 Saturday when Hardy picked up a TKO victory over Alice Yauger at Madison Square Garden.
Hardy’s MMA skills are green but she displayed an aggressive striking attack and decent defensive grappling against Yauger, a fighter who had a 4-5 record heading into the bout.
The 35-year-old had to overcome a cut on her left eyelid which began leaking following an inadvertent head-butt in the third round. After a brief break where cageside doctors checked whether Hardy could still see, the action resumed and Hardy put away her opponent with a series of crisp punching combinations with 13 seconds remaining in the flyweight contest.
Also at Bellator 180, Conor McGregor training partner James Gallagher dominated Chinzo Machida, the brother of former UFC champion Lyoto Machida.
Gallagher, a 20-year-old featherweight star in the making, improved to 7-0 as a pro after taking the fight to the ground and locking in a rear-naked choke at 2:22 of the opening round. Machida, 40, fell to 5-3 in MMA.
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