Cage Warriors veteran and recent UFC hire Dan Hardy (19-6) is set to fight Pride veteran Akihiro Gono (28-12) at UFC 89. Hardy has won 10 of his 19 fights by T/KO and has won 8 of his last 9 fights including 3 in a row. Hardy had this to say about fighting Gono in England, "Gono has been in there with some of the best fighters in the world and always put on a good show, he comes to fight and has very good counter-strikes and some interesting submissions. He is a perfect opponent for me to prove my place in the UFC welterweight division and give the fans a great show."Gono is a Pride veteran who can submit an opponent from just about any position as Tamdan McCrory found out at UFC 78 last year. Gono used a beautiful armbar to beat him in their fight, the submission earned Gono a submission of the night bonus.
Akihiro Gono has also fought many Pride and UFC veterans in Shogun Rua and Dan Henderson. He also owns wins over two of the hottest Middleweight fighters in the world with submission victories over Gegard Mousasi (22-2) who is in the semi-finals of the Dream tournament in Japan and has won 9 in a row since the loss. He also owns a decision victory over the Cuban born Hector Lombard (16-2) who is finally UFC bound and has won 10 fights in a row. Gono is always entertaining and exciting we will find out how his second fight in the Octagon goes at UFC 89.
