Heather Hardy: Watch me bounce back
Heather Hardy: “I knew coming into this new world I was taking a big risk, and this is all part of my journey.”
Undefeated women’s boxing champion Heather Hardy made her MMA debut at Bellator NYC, held in Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York. She won a tough fight, and was talked about as a potential star. That’s not fair to anyone after their first MMA fight, and in Hardy’s second fight, at Bellator 185 on Friday, she lost to the unheralded Kristina Williams, who was making her MMA debut.
With a single win, too many fans are too quick to push a fighter as the next big thing. And with a single loss, too many fans are quick to label a fighter a loser. The truth is Hardy has a compelling backstory, is mediagenic, and holds a 21-0 record in boxing, and has gone 1-1 in MMA. She joins Rafael Dos Anjos, Mark Hunt, Jacare, Andrei Arlovski, Saku, and Cris Cyborg among other fighters who started out 1-1. Arlovski even lost to Datsik.
In a message on her social network, ‘The Heat’ vowed to return.
“I’m sorry I let everyone down,” she wrote. “I gave it my all out there, and I truly hope it showed. I’d rather lose then give y’all a boring fight because I appreciate every one of you… sponsors, coaches, friends, family and fans… and the worst part was knowing I couldn’t get the job done for all of you.
“Congrats to a game Kristina Williams, who had an answer for everything I tried. OSU!
“And in case everyone is wondering, YES, I will be back. Nothing will ever take the fight out of me, not even this broken nose. I knew coming into this new world I was taking a big risk, and this is all part of my journey.
“You’ve all heard how resilient I am. Now watch me bounce back.”
