Greg Hardy gets a new opponent for UFC 270

Oct 18, 2019; Boston, MA, USA; Greg Hardy (red) reacts before a fight with Ben Sosoli (blue) in a heavyweight bout during UFC Fight Night at the TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports

Today we learned that next week’s UFC 270 card is having some last minute changes. Notably, a main card heavyweight matchup between Greg Hardy (7-4, 1 NC) and Aleksei Oleinik (59-16) is off. Ariel Helwani reported the news this afternoon that Oleinik has pulled out of the fight.

With that, the UFC has shifted and found a new opponent for Hardy. Hardy will now take on Sergey Spivak (13-3) on the main card. Spivak is actually a tougher fight for Hardy than the veteran Oleinik. Spivak will be looking to bounce back when we see him next Saturday night.

The last time we saw Spivak was when he was taking on surging heavyweight contender Tom Aspinall. Aspinall knocked Spivak out in the first round. That fight was back in September. The loss had snapped a three-fight win streak for Spivak.

During that winning streak, Spivak used his superior grappling to pick up some wins and even picked up a win over Aleksei Oleinik. He figures to be a tough test for Greg Hardy at UFC 270.

Last UFC fight for Hardy?

When Greg Hardy makes the walk at UFC 270, it could be for the final time as a UFC fighter. It has come out this week that next weekend will be the final fight of Greg Hardy’s contract. At this time, there’s no word on if the two sides planning on extending the deal or if Hardy plans on resigning.

Based on some recent comments from Hardy, it almost seems like he’s wanting to test the market. He will head into this final contest looking to snap a two-fight losing streak. The last time we saw Hardy was back at UFC 264 when he was knocked out in the first round by Tai Tuivasa.

Hardy won his first three professional MMA fights by vicious first round knockout. Given his background, he made his UFC debut in a co-main event slot when the promotion first debuted on ESPN+. Unfortunately for Hardy, he lost that first fight by disqualification.

Since that DQ loss, he’s gone 4-3, 1 NC in eight UFC fights. He’s looked like a very serviceable heavyweight, but he never really got going towards the top of the division. He needs a big performance next Saturday night to prove what he’s worth as his contract expires.