Former NFL DE Greg Hardy announced that he’s putting his football career on hold and plans to pursue an MMA career.
“I’m very focused and excited to start my MMA career,” Hardy said in a statement provided to MMAFighting.com. “I’m going to do this the right way, I can assure you of that.”
“I’m fully committed to being as successful as I can be in this sport.”
According to Hardy, the plan is for him to schedule his first heavyweight fight in 2017.
Last we heard regarding Hardy, he arrested in Richardson, Texas for possession of cocaine a few weeks ago.
Hardy actually worked out for the Jaguars this summer, but they said they weren’t looking to sign him to a contract, and were instead trying to get a sense of his conditioning in case they needed to bring someone in.
Outside of that, the Redskins were tossed out a potential option for Hardy, but they denied any interest in him.
Hardy, 28, is a former sixth-round pick of the Panthers back in 2010. He spent five years in Carolina before signing a one-year contract worth $11.3 million with the Cowboys that included weekly bonuses as a way to protect the team from him missing a number of games.
In 2015, Hardy appeared in 12 games and recorded 35 tackles, six sacks, an interception, a forced fumble and a pass defense for the Cowboys. Pro Football Focus has him rated as the No. 17 defensive end out of 48 qualifying players.
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