Greg Hardy says UFC's "no crowd" rule at UFC 249 was a "game changer" -- because he could hear the TV announcers critiquing him during his fight ... and he adjusted accordingly to get the victory!
Hardy (6-2) was fighting Yorgan De Castro (6-1) in a heavyweight bout Saturday night -- with Hardy taking some serious leg kicks early in the match.
Daniel Cormier -- who's doing the announcing with Joe Rogan -- had said during the broadcast that Hardy needed to figure out a way to check those heavy kicks before they took a real toll on his body.
Of course, Cormier -- one of the greatest UFC fighters of all time -- was talking to the audience at home ... but since you can hear a pin drop in the arena thanks to the COVID-19 safety protocol, Hardy could listen too!
AND, HE WAS PAYING ATTENTION!!!
Hardy ended up winning the match by unanimous decision -- and during the post-fight interview, he gave all the credit to D.C.
"Thank God for not having the crowd," Hardy said ... "Shout out to D.C."
"I heard him tell me to check him, that I needed to figure out how to check it ... so I started trying to check him! Game changer!"
Of course, De Castro could presumably also hear Cormier -- maybe he should have listened up, too!!