Dan Hardy Sees World of Opportunity in Brussels for PFL Europe

For Dan Hardy, the sky is the limit for the PFL Europe organization.

PFL Europe is back this weekend from Brussels, Belgium, where it continues its quest to search for and develop high-level fighters. Serving in one of multiple roles he has with the Professional Fighters League, former Ultimate Fighting Championship title challenger Hardy is the head of Fighter Operations for PFL Europe. “The Outlaw” spoke with Sherdog about the event happening in Brussels on July 5 and much more.

With a 16-fight card on deck for PFL Europe 2: 2025 First Round, Hardy is thrilled with the construction of its lineup which will feature plenty of local athletes. The evening will conclude with a Belgian in the main attraction as Patrick Habirora (6-0) squares off with former UFC player Danny Roberts (18-8). Hardy noted that this is the level of fight that Habriora asked for, and Roberts will more than be a game opponent.

“It’s going to be an incredible fight,” Hardy gushed. “Patrick is a special fighter and I think everybody that has watched him compete from his amateur to his pro career would say it’s obvious. He has that X-factor, he’s a special athlete, a special character and he has all the skills to keep moving in the right direction.

“His performances in the PFL have been outstanding and he’s the main reason we’re in Brussels. What I’ll also say is Danny Roberts is a big step up for Patrick, many people have said this is the test they want to see Patrick have. It’s a big risk for Patrick,” he noted.

The Next Coming of Khabib Nurmagomedov

Another featured athlete competing in Brussels is the undefeated Ibragim Ibragimov, who Hardy says has immense pressure on him. Even so, the 9-0 self-described “Mauler” from Dagestan is already drawing comparisons to greats like countryman Khabib Nurmagomedov.

“I’m always excited to see Ibragim, I’m even excited just to see him train,” Hardy said. “The way that he manhandles people is similar to what you’d hear about Khabib when he trained at AKA. He’s got a lot of pressure on his shoulders because of his name, his reputation, his brothers are doing incredible in the soccer world, he’s linked with Khabib, and he carries it so well.

“He doesn’t worry about how much he’s getting paid; he wants to stay active and stay busy,” Hardy continued. “The challenge for us is finding opponents for him, so we’re not sure if we are even seeing his true potential yet.”

With the bantamweights and welterweights featured this weekend, Hardy listed several talents to keep an eye on.

“We’ve got great fights in the tournament bracket,” the matchmaker explained. “At bantamweight, Dean Garnett is back, we’ve got good French stars including Julien Lopez. We’ve got a couple new faces as well, Jan Cieplowski and Anas Azizoun, we are just stacked with talent.”

Focusing on the main event and the opportunity ahead for Habirora, Hardy believes this could be a passing of the torch moment for the Belgium native.

“This shapes up to be a changing of the guard opportunity for Habriora, but you have to be ready to change the guard, but if Patrick is not ready, Danny Roberts will reign supreme and move himself closer to the World Tournament,” the former opponent of Georges St. Pierre remarked.