By Thomas Gerbasi

Heather Hardy won’t lie. She’s had visions of being in the ring at Madison Square Garden’s Theater after Saturday’s rematch with Shelly Vincent and thought about how it will feel following her first world title fight, one being televised on HBO.

She laughs and, clearly, the last charge to 126 pounds has started. But she’s in good spirits on the Monday of fight week, unbothered by the extra obligations that go along with being on premium cable and in a championship bout in New York City.  “The Heat” is used to the attention and used to getting things done that go beyond what happens in Gleason’s Gym.

“The boxing side, everything’s the same,” she said. “I’m training to get ready for a fight, still selling tickets, doing all my other stuff. The big deal is that I was able to secure sponsors since this is my TV fight, so I finally got that. So it’s added another level to things I have to get finished before fight day.”

That work ethic – from her work in the gym to her willingness to tell her story, no holds barred - is why Hardy may very well be the most recognizable female fighter in the United States who doesn’t have “Olympian” stamped next to her name. And that attention goes far beyond what she’s done in the ring, though a 21-0 record is nothing to scoff at.

So when it was announced that her rematch with Vincent was going to be on HBO, it was a testament to what she’s been fighting for ever since she turned pro in 2012 – for female boxers to be respected, to be treated fairly, to be given the same shot her male peers were getting. No, it won’t change the game overnight, but it’s a start. So no matter what the result is on Saturday, Hardy already has a good chunk of her legacy already established.

Just don’t tell her that, because she knows that getting a foot in the door is one thing; kicking it down is another, and she’s got her combat boots laced up for work this weekend.

“Only half the battle was getting us on TV,” Hardy said. “I felt like, yeah, I got us on HBO, awesome, pat on the back. Now I gotta go out there and prove I deserved it. So this show is not just about winning my world title and cementing my legacy. This is about giving me a chance and now I’m gonna show that it wasn’t a bad move. So this has my name on the line. People seem to think I’m super happy and complacent and ‘Oh, I did my job,’ and I’m just gonna coast through this. No, I’ve got a legacy to live up to. I’ve been screaming and shouting about deserving my spot in prime time, on the big card on the main stage. I can’t f**k it up now. She’s gonna pay for that. She’s gonna pay for every time I had to open up my mouth. I’ve got to back it up.”

In their first fight in August 2016, Hardy and Vincent delivered one of the best fights in the history of women’s boxing. After ten action-packed rounds, it was Hardy leaving her native Brooklyn with a majority decision, and it was a natural for a return bout. It would take more than two years to get that rematch done, though, and in that time, Hardy won three more times in the ring, but she also made a highly-publicized move to mixed martial arts, where she has gone 2-1 for the Bellator promotion.

Already in 2018, she defeated Ana Julaton in the cage and Iranda Paola Torres in the ring, and with the money apparently better on the MMA side of the street, many believed Hardy would make the full-time move to the land of armbars and head kicks. But a rematch with Vincent with a WBO featherweight title on the line has thrown a wrench into the works.

“The fact that I’m getting a little bit of television and publicity and air time really means the world to me because it doesn’t happen to non-Olympians,” Hardy said. “It’s only the Olympians that are getting the spotlight, and in 2017, I was just under the impression that I’m not gonna get my shot and I can’t keep screaming and yelling with no one listening. So the fact that I have this platform now will hopefully open up doors come next year. I love boxing. From Day One, I loved boxing, so if the opportunities are there, it’s always going to be my first pick.”

There will be opportunities in the ring should she repeat her first win over Vincent. She’s talked of fights with Jelena Mrdjenovich and Jennifer Han, and while she would be giving up size, a clash with Katie Taylor would be a moneymaker. But again, she has to beat Vincent again, and while Hardy has always been better the second time around in rematches against Mikayla Nebel, Renata Domsodi, Noemi Bosques and Edina Kiss, she’s not taking anything for granted in this weekend’s bout.

“I never think it’s gonna be easier the second time,” said Hardy. “I go into every rematch thinking these girls aren’t gonna show me the same thing as last time because I beat them already. These girls are gonna come back with something new, something stronger, something harder. So I come up with my defense and my artillery twice as much as it was in the first one.

“I don’t really study my opponents,” she continues. “We always had the mindset that as long as I’m the best me, I should be able to make the adjustments no matter who’s in front of me. It kind of backfired when I got kicked in the face 78 times, but outside of that and inside of boxing, there’s really not much someone’s gonna do with two hands that I haven’t seen before.”

One of those kicks, from Kristina Williams, broke Hardy’s nose and led to her lone MMA loss a year ago. Since then, she beat Julaton in MMA and won two boxing matches, proving that while Hardy’s story is compelling, her grit is what puts people in the seats. She’s shown it time and time again, and she’s ready to go to the well again this weekend in the biggest fight of her career.

As far as she’s concerned, she knows what the outcome will be, but what happens after that –outside of the nachos and guacamole – is open for discussion. That’s a good place to be in for a 36-year-old prizefighter who has been battling tirelessly to have that luxury.
 
“Once I win that title, I’m gonna sit back and really figure out what I’m doing with the rest of my career,” said Hardy. “I really feel like the rest of my career is gonna be a one fight at a time basis, whether it’s boxing, MMA, cage, ring, backyard.”

She laughs. It’s been a long time coming.