Former UFC welterweight title challenger Dan Hardy is interested in making a return to the Octagon, but he wants to do so without upsetting any kind of rankings.

Hardy has not competed inside the cage since September of 2012, where he scored a unanimous decision victory over Amir Sadollah.

‘The Outlaw’ was forced to the sidelines in 2013 after being diagnosed with Wolf-Parkinson-Whyte syndrome. The heart condition put his fighting career on hold for several years, but he was able to take the time off to become a successful analyst and commentator for the UFC.

In August of 2019 Dan Hardy announced he had entered the USADA testing pool.

Most recently Hardy sat down with ESPN where he detailed his comeback plans.

“First and foremost, I’m an analyst now. I’m a commentator, so I don’t want to fight someone that’s on a trajectory to a title shot. Because, I’m not interested in stepping in there and upsetting any kind of rankings and involving myself in those conversations.” Dan Hardy explained. “The people I’ve had conversations about fighting, obviously ‘Cowboy’ (Donald Cerrone) is near the top of the list cause he’d be a great pick. Anthony Pettis, that’s a fight I’ve discussed with Felder, he’s discussed with Anthony. That’s a fight we’d both like to happen.”

While Dan Hardy is not interested in a title shot, he is still aiming pretty high considering his long layoff.

Donald Cerrone is currently riding a three-fight losing streak, but all three of those losses have come to top lightweight contenders Justin Gaethje, Tony Ferguson and Conor McGregor.

Former UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis is also on a losing skid. ‘Showtime’ has dropped back-to-back fights to opponents Nate Diaz and Carlos Diego Ferreira respectively.

Who would you like to see Dan Hardy fight in his Octagon return given the opponents he named to ESPN? Share your thoughts in the comments section of this post PENN Nation!

This article first appeared on BJPENN.com April 11, 2020