Former UFC fighter and commentator Dan Hardy has suggested his first post-UFC fight could take place inside a boxing ring.

Hardy confirmed earlier this month that he’d been released from his UFC fighter contract in the wake of also being let go from his commentary duties. While Hardy has made it clear that he’d like to work with the promotion again, the 39-year-old isn’t going to waste any time in finding another place to compete.

During a recent interview with Mike Swick, though, Hardy surprised a lot of folks by insinuating he could actually take part in a boxing match before another mixed martial arts contest.

“I might look at doing a boxing match towards the end of the year and then maybe see where MMA is next year, but I’d like to have another MMA fight” said Hardy.

Hardy was diagnosed with Wolff–Parkinson–White syndrome back in 2013 and despite suggesting he’d been medically cleared multiple times since then, he hasn’t been able to land a fight with the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Of course, while the UFC is where Hardy really made a name for himself, it’s not the only promotion out there that can offer him what he wants.

Some will question the logic of him stepping into the world of boxing when he’s such a keen student of the mixed martial arts sphere, but even if he goes ahead with it, we can’t imagine it’ll be too long until he’s back in some kind of MMA cage where he belongs.

Do you think Dan Hardy is being serious about the idea of a boxing match or is he trying to throw us all off the scent? If he does box, who can you picture him going up against and in what setting? Let us know your thoughts down in the comments, BJPENN Nation!