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Suicidal takedown proved Hardy's head isn't right

Dan Hardy called for a stand-up war at UFC Live 5 and then decided to take it to the mat at the vital moment © Getty Images

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The Jekyll and Hyde career of Dan "The Outlaw" Hardy took another ugly turn on Sunday night, as the British welterweight was submitted in the final moments of his barn-burner brawl with the retiring Chris Lytle. After foolishly taking the submission-adept American to the mat, Hardy found himself trapped in a guillotine choke, and the flailing Englishman was forced to tap so the referee could drag Lytle away.

Hardy specifically asked for the bout with Lytle, knowing the American was tailor made for the type of stand-up war that he had been so bitterly craving. All of the hype and all of the build-up to the encounter was that Lytle would turn a blind eye to his opponent's ground-game weaknesses and retire in a ball of flames - or even a blaze of glory.

It would turn out to be the latter for Lytle as he hung up his UFC mitts with an extra $130k stuffed in his back pocket, having soaked up the bonus dollars for both Fight of the Night and Submission of the Night - but the future now looks even more unclear for The Outlaw.

At an even 4-4, Hardy has referred to his time in the UFC as "the quickest rise, and the quickest fall the UFC has ever seen." His performance and bravery in this encounter saw UFC co-owner Lorenzo Fertitta take to Twitter to applaud Hardy and announce his immediate job security.

The irony of this whole situation is that Hardy was the one stalking Lytle towards the end, having rocked his opponent and sent him onto the back foot. The British corner was urging Hardy to crank the pressure up a notch knowing he had to avoid a judges' decision.

This made the choice to go for the takedown all the more surprising, and in time will no doubt turn out to be one of the worst decisions of the Outlaw's career. Having asked for a stand-up war, he signalled the end by taking it to the mat.

For now the Brit will take some much needed time away from the spotlight before he returns to the Octagon for what will undoubtedly be the final opportunity to salvage his UFC career.

It is difficult to say where Hardy now needs to channel his focus after he was ultimately beaten at his own game in Milwaukee. Before the submission, Hardy was taking way too many unnecessary shots, displaying minimal head movement, and the early disappearance of any kicks was a worrying sight for any of his observing fans.

A spell in the gym, learning new tricks, without a fight date in the diary, may be exactly what Hardy needs at this point of his career, as the mental aspect appears to be as much of an issue as anything. The time is now for Hardy to put things right, he has been given one final shot at redemption and he should not even consider taking that fight until he knows his mind is 100 per cent right.

Rashad Evans, who will soon fight for the chance to be crowned light-heavyweight champion for a second time, has always spoken of the need to make the the right choices, the smart choices, for the sake of his career. Hardy must do the same.

Up until now Hardy's losses were put down to a dominant champion, a million dollar punch and a 15-minute smothering. But on Sunday it was apparent that the Outlaw of old was not the figure standing inside Octagon.

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