Chris Lytle probably couldn’t have ended his career in a more perfect way than having a great standup war with Dan Hardy and finishing off the bout with a guillotine submission in round 3. He won the fight of the night honors as well as submission of the night, and the UFC generously donated a Harley Davidson to the Indiana native for his service to the company. Lytle is an immensely classy individual and deserves all of the accolades and rewards he’s received. Best of luck to Lytle.

The “UFC on Versus 5″ has added another new bout to their event, which Milwaukee, Wisconsin event which takes place August 14th at the Bradley Center. The latest addition being Dan Hardy taking on fellow welterweight slugger Chris Lytle, as reported by ESPN UK.  I’d be rather shocked if either fighter attempted a takedown in this fight, and am rather certain that this will be a 15 minute duel purely of standup action, assuming one fighter doesn’t get parted from consciousness midway through the fight.

Hardy was pushing for a fight with Lytle, and he has gotten his wish. The “calling out” of Lytle has nothing to do with disdain, it’s rather impossible to dislike the friendly fireman who puts it all on the line and has nothing negative to say about pretty much everything. Hardy moreso was interested in stepping up to plate and taking on a fighter who will make for a very interesting standup battle. Most fans were certain that Hardy’s last bout against Anthony Johnson would be such an affair, however, to many people’s surprise, Johnson took the fight to the mat and won it via decision mainly there. It was the intelligent way of winning the fight, but in the pre-fight banter it seemed as though that fight would be a complete striking affair.

Nonetheless, the bet that Chris Lytle will stand up for the full 15 is a really safe one. Lytle, a long-time vet of the game of MMA, is always looking to be an exciting fighter first before anything. His mental transformation which took place a few years back, where he vowed to fight to be exciting no matter what has earned him much praise in the MMA community for being such a thrilling competitor with some gigantic heart to boot.

Hardy is likely at the end of the rope with the UFC in that he has dropped 3 straight and another loss would probably mean being cut from the organization. While an exciting fighter and once a contender for the UFC welterweight crown, Hardy has struggled against some tough opponents–GSP, Carlos Condit and Anthony Johnson. While a fan favorite and admired by UFC president Dana White, 4 straight losses would justify being temporarily relegated to the smaller shows.

The stakes are high for this fight. Chris Lytle is about entertainment value first, but deep inside his Indiana-bred heart is the desire to be champ. He was one win away from getting a title shot against Georges St Pierre, but lost a very close decision in the finale of “The Ultimate Fighter” comeback show against Matt Serra, which faded that dream. However, Lytle at this stage needs to make a run real quick if he in fact can make a final dash to the title before the 36 year old welterweight decides to call it a career. And Hardy, who fought for the belt in 2010, still desperately yearns to have that gold around his waist.

Both fighters come to fight every time out, but this time there’s more at stake and should make for a very intense and passionate bout late this summer. In a pure standup fight, would lean towards Lytle outpointing Hardy.

Lytle via close decision.