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What does the UFC’s willingness to build up Greg Hardy slowly tell us about plans for the controversial former NFL star? Will Phil “CM Punk” Brooks give up on MMA just because the UFC has given up on him? And what’s the dream fight card if you could match up any fighters in their respective primes, regardless of era or promotion?

All that and more in this week’s Twitter Mailbag. To ask a question of your own, tweet to @BenFowlkesMMA.

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It’s not unprecedented. The UFC has signed fighters before and then paid their way while they competed outside the organization, for one reason or another, with Cris Cyborg’s time in Invicta FC as probably the most notable example.

It does tell us something about how the UFC views Greg Hardy, though, and where the company’s priorities lie. He got a shot on Dana White’s Contender Series with zero pro fights to his credit, and he was impressive enough that White has decided to “build him up” before throwing him into the UFC. Meanwhile, a guy like Nick Newell, who’s a seasoned pro, has to practically beg for a chance, and even then White acts like he’s uneasy about it.

The people defending Hardy’s inclusion in the UFC tend to make two arguments:

1. Everybody deserves a second chance (or, in Hardy’s case, more like a third).

2. Everybody deserves the right to make a living.

The first one would be a lot more convincing if Hardy were the least bit apologetic or remorseful. So far, he hasn’t been. He’s proclaimed his innocence on domestic violence charges. He’s implied that photographic evidence was faked. He’s basically called the alleged victim a liar, which is the opposite of taking responsibility and working to be better.

I believe in the capacity for redemption, but I also believe you have to earn it. Simply being good at a different sport doesn’t prove that you’ve turned your life around.

On the second point, we as a society have already decided that if you do certain things, it disqualifies you from certain jobs. If you don’t believe me, go ask Chael Sonnen what happened to his realtor’s license.

We can argue about whether Hardy’s specific case should result in him being kept out of the UFC. We can also point out that other, much more qualified fighters have been kept out or kicked out for far less.

The one thing we can’t do is pretend that a job as UFC fighter is an inalienable right that survives all manner of crappy and/or criminal behavior. That seemed to be what White was getting at when he claimed that assaulting a woman was “one thing you never come back from.” Guess that was before he saw Hardy.

My answer to both is the same: Tyron Woodley. But what’s most important is how their styles match up against one another. For the most part, Colby Covington needs to take his opponents down, and Woodley simply does not get taken down. On the flip side, Woodley’s one-punch power means he has at least one path to victory on the feet, while I’m not sure Covington does.

The problem with Woodley is that he’s sometimes too content with nullifying his opponent’s offense, and he doesn’t offer much of his own in return. Covington’s the kind of fighter who likes to get right in your face and stay there, which Woodley hasn’t had to deal with in a while.

The real variable here is the mental game. Covington’s going to try to wind Woodley up, and Woodley’s response so far suggests that it won’t take much. Will that make the champ more vulnerable, or just more ferocious? The desire for an answer to that question just might drive a few extra pay-per-view buys.

Honestly, I’d respect the hell out of CM Punk if his next move was to take a fight on some local promotion. That would show that he’s really in this to test himself and become a fighter, to totally immerse himself in that personal martial arts journey.

Because otherwise? If it turns out you only wanted to do it when you could jump straight into the UFC and make six or seven figures despite being woefully out of your depth against the even the most carefully selected of opponents? Then it’s hard to keep telling us that this was about passion rather than money.

But you still ordered the PPV, right? It’s not like the buyrate gets lowered if it turns out the people who paid for it didn’t actually sit there and watch it.

And while I hate to get all back-in-my-day on you, I remember paying to watch Brandon Lee Hinkle vs. Sean “I’m only here because I’m the cop who fought Kimbo Slice” Gannon in the freaking co-main event of UFC 55. I was reportedly one of only about 125,000 people who did, which means maybe the numbers were not too far off what this event is rumored to have done.

And somehow, just like UFC 225, that event also featured Andrei Arlovski.

Brother, if the beer is cold and I’ve already had a few, then I’ll at least consider drinking it out of just about any receptacle. Where you lose me is when they spit in it. Or if they use Coors Light, which is basically the same thing.

I’m with you on that one. People who were surprised at Michael Bisping acting more like a pro-wrestling manager (or, well, like himself) than a serious sports journalist when he interviewed Covington on the FOX Sports post-fight show following UFC 225 must have approached the whole thing with very different expectations than I did.

Any show where UFC employees (or contractors) interview other UFC employees (or contractors) is not news; it’s marketing and public relations.

And Bisping is not a journalist so much as a retired fighter turned professional “personality.” Who seriously felt shocked and appalled that he didn’t turn out to be Howard Cosell? When in his entire career did he ever lead you to believe that he was the kind of guy who could absorb even a minor perceived insult and not go all scorched earth in his response?

The real mistake was using the state-run TV show to essentially hype up a beef that’s not going anywhere. If it had been Woodley there at the analyst desk throwing shade at Covington after a win, I suspect people would have better known what to make of it.

Never get so caught up in the excitement and drama of the individual contests that you get fooled into thinking of this as just like any other pro sport. It’s not. The fight game – whether it’s boxing, MMA, whatever – is and has always been a completely different thing.

In a normal sport, winning is the only thing that matters. The path to the championship is clear from the start, and it doesn’t change depending on who you are or how many people like you. That is not and never really has been the case with fighting.

Also, related to rule No. 1? Never forget that promoters are in this solely to make money – your money. They are not your friends. They do not love you. A lot of times, they don’t even deserve you. Pay for their product when you think it’s worth your money, but don’t get fooled into thinking that they see you as anything but a customer.

The UFC is reluctant to pay fighters who show up ready to fight but have their opponents drop out at the last minute. It’s hard for me to see those same people opening up the checkbook just to smooth things over for the richest guy on the roster.

Besides, if those fighters on the bus want to get paid, they’re better off suing Conor McGregor than waiting for a UFC payoff. I get the sense that some of that “Diddy bread” will be going toward settlements soon.

First of all, 15 fights?! That sounds like the MMA gods just trying to ensure that event lasts eight hours while half the crowd blacks out and starts fights with the other half. Give me eight fights:

• Fedor Emelianenko vs. Brock Lesnar
• Georges St-Pierre vs. Rickson Gracie
• Cain Velasquez vs. Jon Jones
• Shinya Aoki vs. Demian Maia
• Conor McGregor vs. B.J. Penn
• Anderson Silva vs. Robbie Lawler
• Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Dan Henderson
• Gegard Mousasi vs. Wanderlei Silva

Don’t @ me.

Ben Fowlkes is MMAjunkie and USA TODAY’s MMA columnist. Follow him on Twitter at @BenFowlkesMMA. Twitter Mailbag appears every Thursday on MMAjunkie.