Yahoo Sports Veronica Hardy talks self-growth, husband Dan’s importance for UFC Austin win
AUSTIN, Texas – Veronica Hardy beat Jamey-Lyn Horth with a split decision Saturday to open up the preliminary card at UFC on ESPN 52 at Moody Center in Austin, Texas.
Take a look inside the fight with Hardy, who now has back-to-back wins for the first time in more than seven years.
Veronica Hardy vs. Jamey-Lyn Horth
Result: Veronica Hardy def. Jamey-Lyn Horth via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Updated records: Hardy (8-4-1 MMA, 3-4 UFC), Horth (6-1 MMA, 1-2 UFC)
Key stats: Hardy lost her first three UFC fights, but now has wins in three of her past four.
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Hardy on the fight's key moment
“I’m just happy to get another win this year. It’s been a mad year. Marrying Dan Hardy, I just didn’t know it was going to be that much of a wild ride. But here we are a year later, and I’m pretty happy. There’s things that I feel like I could have done better, but I’ll always feel like that. I feel like I landed the more damage, just the whole fight itself.”
Hardy on her growth
“I feel like this year was a lot about self-growth. It’s all about believing in myself a bit more just to realize that a lot of my failures and a lot of my losses have been due to to circumstances outside of myself, and that I am capable of doing this. I just need the right circumstances around me, and I do have that now with my family, with my team, and with everybody that spends the time to help me. I just want to make them proud, and with their support, I feel like I can do this.”
Hardy on what she wants next
“Jamie was somebody that I trained with. I wouldn’t have liked to fight her. I would have liked to fight somebody else, but you don’t really get to choose here. Whatever they do give me, it’s more about just being ready for the opponent that I have in front of me and just having a bit of time so I can make sure that I am prepared.
“That, for me, is the most important thing because everybody, ranked or not, is tough in this division. Everyone’s tough. You have somebody that comes in, whether they’re making their debut or anything, and the level is so high that a number is a number. It’s great to get toward the belt or to get toward advancing in your career. But everybody here is tough and everybody’s giving it their all because it’s a dream to be here.”
To hear more from Hardy, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 52.
