Dan Hardy believes Ross Pearson is the UK’s best shot at UFC gold

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The Ultimate Fighter season nine winner, Ross “The Real Deal” Pearson has come along way since his time on the show five years ago. In his whirlwind UFC career, Pearson has won eight bouts and lost four, although one of those losses was a robbery against Diego Sanchez earlier this year.

Although Pearson is technically on a one fight winning streak, anyone who watches the sport of MMA knows that Pearson deserves to be on a two-fight winning streak heading into his UFC Fight Night 55 co-main event against Al Iaquinta.

Fresh off a TKO victory over former No. 1 contender Gray Maynard back in August, Pearson is looking to take out Iaquinta and ascend up the stacked lightweight ladder. If he is able to get a finish, a top 10 opponent is surely in the Brit’s future, and potentially a title shot could be lined up later on in 2015.

Dan Hardy, former No. 1 Welterweight contender turned analyst, recently wrote a story for “The Independent”, and noted that he believes Pearson has the best chance to take a title back to the UK.

“Pearson for my money is the best chance the UK has right now of clinching a UFC title,” Hardy wrote. “His career has been a great learning experience for him thus far and at only 30 years old the Sunderland, England native has plenty of time. He is improving from fight to fight and over the next year or two I hope we will see him really start to create waves and force his way into the top ten.”

We will find out this weekend if Pearson has what it takes to cement himself as an elite contender in the 155 pound division.