Fighters Only

Issue 198

June 2023

From the Shamrocks to the Diaz brothers and the Shevchenko sisters, we’ve seen siblings succeed on the world stage. But what’s it like taking your MMA journey alongside a brother or sister? Jake Smith caught up with English fighting brothers and Cage Warriors stars Harry and George Hardwick to get their experience of competing side by side as they look to make it all the way to the top.

George and Harry Hardwick's journey into combat sports started in an extremely unique way. Growing up as brothers in Middlesbrough in the early 2000s, they spent much of their time playing video games. It was that passion that eventually opened the door to MMA when they both discovered a demo version of the UFC Undisputed video game in 2009.

“We played as ‘Shogun’ Rua on the game and saw that one of the styles was Muay Thai and we tried to find an MMA gym close by. The closest thing was a Muay Thai gym, so we both got into that.” explained George.

Harry added: “The way the commentators described ‘Shogun’ Rua’s Muay Thai and it sounded so cool,so we went to Muay Thai for about three years. But we were always more fans of MMA and, when our Thai Boxing coach moved to an MMA gym to teach, we tagged along with him and started doing MMA at Middlesbrough Fight Academy. That’s the same gym we are still fighting out of now.”

Competing is tough enough, but watching a sibling go through the wringer evokes another set of emotions entirely. As Harry explained, both cornering and having your brother in your corner poses different challenges.

“They are both very difficult for their own reasons,” he said. “Fighting is obviously physically very unpleasant, exhausting, and painful, whereas cornering can be emotionally quite tough because you don’t feel in control of what's going on.

“However, I would say that cornering has got a bit easier as the years have gone on because we have got it down to a tee – we are both very proficient at cornering one another. That’s not to say we aren’t proficient at fighting, but when you’re fighting, you’re getting kicked and punched and it is physically painful.”

George, on the other hand, much prefers being in the cage competing than he does in the corner of his older brother.

“It is definitely easier to fight with Harry in my corner than for Harry to fight and me to be in his corner,” he said. “That’s partly because Harry has stressful fights all the time and he always gets dropped or gets gashes on his head and then comes back and wins somehow!

“Also, you’re not behind the wheel in that situation, so when he's fighting I have to consider all of the bad situations when I'm coaching him, whereas when I am fighting I just get to be an idiot and just go in there and fight and do what comes natural.”

Prior to penning multi-fight deals with Cage Warriors, the Middlesbrough duo found themselves in somewhat of a transitional period, as they struggled to find regular competition on one promotion. Harry explained the difficulties they faced.

“It was a frustrating time when we weren’t signed to Cage Warriors. It was hard to get fights, it was hard to stay active,” he said. “We’d get one fight on one promotion then we’d have no idea when the next fight would come and we would be in fight limbo for most of the year. We would just have to take fights if and when they came.”

George said, “Cage Warriors have just streamlined everything. Consistent fights makes sense and it's just a very easy promotion to work with.”

The Hardwicks have a fierce passion for competition. Throughout their careers both men have opted to take fights that wouldn’t necessarily bolster their position in their respective divisions, just so they could remain active. This mindset, George explained, comes from the old-school generation.

“Some people like the idea of being a fighter much more than they like the competition, whereas me and Harry are in it for the competition primarily, the experience of competition.

“There's fights we have taken that wouldn’t advance our position, but we have gone in with the mindset of, ‘If we get beat, then we have made the mistake – they deserve to be above us.’”

The culmination of years of competing finally came to fruition for both in 2022. Harry all but sealed his place as the number one contender in the Cage Warriors featherweight division, while George captured the Cage Warriors lightweight title against Kyle O’Driscoll at Cage Warriors 141.

In a tough, bloody affair, Hardwick slowly shifted through the gears before finishing the bout with his signature left hook to the body – a shot he’s used to finish three of his last five opponents. Since then, he has successfully defended his title against Chris Bungard and Yann Liasse and is knocking on the door of a UFC opportunity.

UK MMA veteran Peter Irving has been a staple in the corner of both brothers and aptly described the pair as “The thinking man’s Diaz brothers.”

“Well, the comparison between fighting brothers is somewhat inevitable, but the Diaz brothers' appeal is a bit… err… unsubtle!” he said. “There’s something clearly compelling about a sibling team, but the Hardwicks are smart guys and their humor is maybe a bit hard to penetrate if you’re not the brightest spark, unlike, say, a smoking weed liberally gimmick.

“If you’re a Hardwick fan, you’ve probably got a bit more about you than the average MMA fan. I think Hardwick fans have to have more of a real appreciation for, and understanding of, the sport than the average MMA viewer.”

Although their journey started in opposite corners, Peter is extremely proud of what the duo has achieved, and to have been part of the journey so far.

“I met the Hardwicks over a decade ago, on the other side of the cage. Harry fought one of my guys. A very talented guy, a good fighter. Harry was just too much for him that night. I knew he was going to be special. When Abdul Mohammed asked me to get involved in their training I couldn’t say no.

“I just had a feeling that they were the right guys. They’ve got the right attitude. Total dedication, students of the game – past, present and future – and the wherewithal to see what the sport is actually all about in a broader sense.

“Working with the Hardwicks has been what kept me in the sport this long. I don’t have a lot of faith left in much, but I believe in them.”

The Hardwicks have their sights firmly set on continuing their fine run of form in 2023, staying active, and hunting the ultimate goal – a pair of UFC contracts. And, with George set to compete for exactly that on Dana White's Contender Series in August, the wider MMA world could soon be introduced to one half of Middlesbrough's famous fighting family.