PLANTATION, Fla. – Dmitrii Smoliakov minces no words when it comes to Saturday’s UFC on ESPN+ 8 matchup with Greg Hardy. He knows he’s being positioned to lose, but said a big surprise is in store.

Why does Smoliakov (9-2 MMA, 0-2 UFC) carry so much confidence going into the bout? Because his upcoming encounter with Hardy (3-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC) won’t be the first time they’ve exchanged fisticuffs.

They’ve done it inside the gym, and Smoliakov said that experience will aid him in victory over the former NFL star.

“We already trained together at American Top Team,” Smoliakov told reporters, including MMA Junkie, at UFC on ESPN+ 8 media day Thursday. “I want to say that there is something bad about him. There’s no question I would meet with him every morning in the restroom. We would see each other all the time, ‘Hello, Greg. Hello Dmitrii.’ We never think we going to fight. I don’t have any choices. He had a choice and he remember our first sparring. We had sparring maybe three or four times. He remember our first sparring. I remember all.

“He has a strong punch, I have the same. I have over 20 years of competing in combat sports in wrestling and everything. He participated in the team sport, it’s a little bit different. I know what I need to bring to the octagon on Saturday.”

UFC on ESPN+ 8 takes place at BB&T Center in Sunrise, Fla. Smoliakov vs. Hardy co-headlines the main card, which streams on ESPN+ following prelims on ESPN and ESPN2.

Smoliakov, 36, returns to the UFC for the first time since January 2017 for the matchup with Hardy. He’s fought just once since his last octagon appearance, winning a fight by first-round submission on a regional card in Russia in January.

A return to the UFC was always part of Smoliakov’s plans, he said, but he wanted to make sure it happened at the appropriate moment.

“I didn’t rush to get back to the UFC because I didn’t want to lose any more matches here,” Smoliakov said. “I spend a lot of times in the training camps, I won one more match before I rejoined here. After that we decided it was the time and it was a great opportunity.”

From the perspective of Hardy’s team, the matchup against Smoliakov may seen advantageous because of his UFC record, inactivity and the past training experience. Smoliakov promises he’s a different fighter than the one who showed “nothing” in his past performances with the promotion and said he has no intention of allowing himself to go down as Hardy’s first UFC win.

“I know the UFC is more interested in Greg Hardy for now because he has a good background for the story,” Smoliakov said. “He is from NFL, a great outlet, changes sport from the major sport to the minor sport. He came to the UFC to try to find himself here. I know they try to get him a win, but this is a mistake to choose me.”

Although Hardy’s athleticism and dedication to MMA have allowed him to make strides in his young career, his inexperience still showed in his UFC debut in January when he was disqualified for landing an illegal knee strike. Smoliakov said there was also a serious condition deficiency and believes that’s one of the several advantages he holds going into fight night.

“I do not believe that he has a plan against me,” Smoliakov said. “He has strong punch at the beginning. What else is going to happen? What is he going to do forward? What is he going to show me? If he prepared his condition, no problem, I’m ready to fight for 15 minutes.”

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