Heavyweight prospect Greg Hardy defeated UFC newcomer Ben Sosoli via unanimous decision on Friday night in Boston, but the match was not without a little bit of controversy.
The three-round fight was pretty underwhelming for the most part as Hardy was patient, but effective in his approach. Using his height and reach to his advantage, Hardy controlled the fight and kept Sosoli at a distance. Sosoli tried a few lunging shots, but his wide punches had little impact.
The most talked about moment in the otherwise lackluster fight came between rounds two and three when Hardy asked for and used an inhaler before stepping into the final round. Television commentators Daniel Cormier, Dominick Cruz, and Jon Anik were shocked and somewhat baffled by the move and immediately sought answers from the UFC's VP of Regulatory Affairs, Marc Ratner.
"Completely illegal," Ratner said. “I just heard him ask for it and his cornerman gave it to him. But that is against all the rules."
According to
Yahoo! Sports’ Kevin Iole, UFC president Dana White said use of the inhaler was approved by the Massachusetts State Athletic Commission. ESPN correspondent Brett Okamoto also reported that if the inhaler was USADA approved, then there is no issue in using it during the fight.
The fight itself may not have been the most exhilerating one of the night, and it certainly wasn't the knockout performance fans have gotten used to with Hardy, but it was a solid win by him nonetheless. With all three judges scoring it 29-28 for Hardy, the former NFL lineman-turned-fighter is now 6-1.