In late 2018, former UFC and Bellator lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez made big news when it was announced he had signed with Asian MMA powerhouse ONE Championship. Alvarez was put right into the mix in the promotion’s lightweight grand prix, and most expectations were that he probably would wind up the champion in short order. But in his debut Sunday, Timofey Nastyukhin shattered that dream when he took out Alvarez with a first-round TKO at “ONE Championship 92: A New Era” in Tokyo.
It’s been less than three years since Alvarez won the UFC’s 155-pound title in just his fourth fight with the promotion. But since then, he is 1-3 with a no-contest, and all three losses are by knockout. So what does the loss mean for Alvarez’s immediate future? What about his legacy? MMA Junkie’s Ben Fowlkes, Steven Marrocco and Fernanda Prates sound off in this edition of “Triple Take.”
Ben Fowlkes: Write him off at your own peril
I wish I had a nickel for every time Alvarez was declared a bust. I would have as many as three or four nickels, which, OK, isn’t a lot, but free nickels are free nickels, baby.
Remember when he came to the UFC after that extremely contentious contract negotiation with Bellator? He lost his first fight in the octagon, a decision to Donald Cerrone, and a lot of gloomy conclusions followed thereafter. Alvarez was too small for the UFC’s lightweight division. His best years were behind him. The wars in Japan and the fights with Michael Chandler had taken their tolls.
Then two years later, he was the UFC lightweight champ.
Of course, he lost that belt to Conor McGregor, then had that no-contest with Dustin Poirier, and OK, now Alvarez was done. Except for the fact that he went out there and knocked out renowned Archduke of Violence Justin Gaethje in his next fight.
Point is, Alvarez is one of those fighters who knows how to bounce back. Obviously there’s got to come a point when age and the sheer mileage of his well-traveled career will catch up with him. He’s 35 and he’s been at this for more than 15 years now, so his days in the sport are probably numbered.
All I’m saying is, don’t assume that one loss to a guy you’ve never heard of is the death knell. If Alvarez came back from this debut loss to become the ONE lightweight champ, it wouldn’t be at all unprecedented for him.
Next page – Steven Marrocco: Why this loss is most concerning for the ‘Underground King’
Steven Marrocco: Why this loss is most concerning for the ‘Underground King’
My experience with Alvarez goes back to the start of my MMA career, where I somehow wound up riding a shuttle bus in St. Petersburg, Russia, with the “Underground King,” Jorge “Three Piece and a Soda” Masvidal and occasional MMA Junkie columnist Julie Kedzie. Billionaire Calvin Ayre was throwing heaps of cash at MMA, and I was there to cover Bodog’s “Clash of the Nations.”
Even back then, Alvarez was considered the next big thing by people in the know. Everywhere he fought (New Jersey mostly), he had this massive cheering section that made him look like a star. And at that moment, he was undefeated with 10 straight stoppages via strikes. So when Nick Thompson knocked him out to win the Bodog welterweight belt, it was a pretty big upset. It shouldn’t have been, because Thompson had a ton of experience. He’d fought in the UFC and beaten some solid guys. He was a worthy contender and showed us all.
Then, as so many times since, Alvarez picked himself up and got back in the win column. These days, he doesn’t need his East Coast cheering section any more. He’s a major MMA star and deserving of the big contract he got for signing with ONE. What’s concerning about his most recent loss, however, is the resume of his victorious opponent.
Prior to stopping Alvarez, Timofey Nastyukhin was laid out by virtual unknown Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev. With the exception of a spectacular win over two-time ONE champ Eduard Folayang, he hasn’t faced or beaten opposition with significant experience, particularly among major promotions.
While the old “on any given night” adage holds true to a certain extent, Sunday’s TKO upset feels like it could be a turning point. The fighters who’ve managed to upset Alvarez – Thompson, Shinya Aoki, Michael Chandler, Donald Cerrone and Conor McGregor – are among the most experienced and decorated lightweights in the MMA business today. If “The Underground King” is getting stopped by fighters in the middle of the pack, you wonder how he’ll be able to climb back on top.
But as Ben says, writing off Alvarez is not a great bet.
Next page – Fernanda Prates: It’s hard to argue facts – but we can have hope
Fernanda Prates: It’s hard to argue facts – but we can have hope
Remember that one time when a thing happened in MMA and everyone took the time to carefully assess it within a larger context and make a reasonable, nuanced conclusion?
Yeah, my point exactly.
Anyone who’s been around MMA long enough knows what Alvarez can do. We’ve seen him beat some of the world’s best, we’ve seen him claim belts in multiple promotions and, most importantly, we’ve seen him prove people wrong. Like, a bunch of times.
Sunday, in his ONE Championship debut, 35-year-old Alvarez went up against a younger opponent who had nothing to lose and everything to gain – an opponent who, by the way, had a pretty decent record and a win over the man who held ONE’s 155-pound belt up until last week.
One very well may weigh all these things and come to the conclusion that, hey, losses happen. Or one may look at a world champion who at one point was a 9-1 betting favorite against a virtual unknown getting lit up and think that, well, maybe it’s time to rethink a few things.
It’s all about how you choose to look at a record like Alvarez’s. Do you focus on wins over Gilbert Melendez and Anthony Pettis, or do you focus on the fact they were split decisions? Given what happened before and after his UFC title win, was it merely the product of one good night? Do you focus on the fact he’s gone 1-3 since then, with three knockout losses, or on the fact that the win was a knockout over none other than Justin “Who Just Demolished Edson Barboza Like It Was No Biggie” Gaethje?
I know where I personally stand on all of these. But from what I’ve learned about MMA and its eternal love affair with revisionist history, I’m tempted to think we’re not with the majority.
I wouldn’t be surprised if he pulled an Alvarez and responded with yet another career comeback, adding yet another title to his shelf and making a lot of people look silly in the process. While that doesn’t happen, though, fact is that Alvarez is in a slump.
And believing that most people will simply dismiss that obvious fact in favor of a kind and comprehensive approach might be a little bit naive.
For additional coverage of ONE Championship 92, check out the MMA Events section of the site.
