Dan Hardy is about to begin one of the toughest things any fighter in MMA can attempt: the long, hard road back to title contention after a one-sided defeat against the champ. 

But to hear "The Outlaw" talk, the way before him is clearly laid out.

And Carlos Condit is just the first, painful step on the path back to the top.

On October 16, Hardy (23-7 1 NC) will return to the Octagon for the first time since his loss against UFC welterweight champ Georges St. Pierre at UFC 111 in March. Facing him will be Carlos Condit (25-5), a man well-known for his toughness in the cage, who has just one loss in his last ten appearances and is coming off a TKO win and Fight of the Night performance against Rory MacDonald at UFC 115.

Hardy feels that the tenacity that can make Condit such a dangerous fighter will play right into his hands.

"His best quality is his persistence," Hardy told the Telegraph. "He's quite tenacious...'Quite' meaning he's not as tenacious as me, and that's where he's going to fall short, because his tenacity is going to get him in a lot of trouble."

Hardy, known for being an aggressive striker himself, says Condit's aggressiveness is going to be a big factor on fight night.

"He's going to try and push the pace of the fight," said Hardy, "and every time he steps forward, he's going to run into something heavy or sharp...and I think that's going to be a telling factor in the fight. I'm going to be standing in the BudLite logo in the centre of the Octagon and every time he comes near it he's going to get punched in the face."

After Condit called out Hardy following his loss to St. Pierre, "The Outlaw" was eager to accept the challenge.

"Condit made a stupid mistake calling me out," Hardy stated. "I am coming off my first loss as a UFC fighter, and was already looking forward to putting a real beating on someone. But this guy actually volunteered for a savage beating by calling me out."

Hardy has never lost on his native soil in the UFC, and he will looking for his fourth-straight UK win in London on October 16. After that, the sky's the limit.

"This is the first step on the road back to title contention. I have a formula to be the UFC welterweight champion, and losing to Condit isn't part of that equation. I will smash him up, and walk through him."

Make sure to check back with us the day of the event for free, live, round-by-round coverage of UFC 120 right here at FiveKnuckles.com! Join expert analyst Mike Williams as he takes you through the entire fight card blow-by-blow and then keep it right here for all the post-fight news and notes you can handle!