When former Bellator lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez knocked out Rafael dos Anjos to claim UFC gold in July 2016, the world was undoubtedly his oyster.
But just four months later, 'The Underground King' himself would be brutally knocked out by Conor McGregor in one of the most one-sided beatdowns in UFC championship history.
So if there was a way to go back in time, to that fateful night at Madison Square Garden, what change would Eddie Alvarez have liked to have made?
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Eddie Alvarez explains what he would change about the fight with Conor McGregor
For Conor McGregor, UFC 205 represented one of the best title-winning performances we'd ever seen inside the octagon; for Alvarez it was a nightmare that still weighs heavily on his mind to this day.
Speaking to UFC icons Michael Bisping and Paul Felder, 'The Underground King' would reveal that the only thing he would change would not be his game plan or tactics, but the mentality he entered the cage with that night.
“Bee [UFC] When I fought Conor I was in the middle of winning the world title and for me it wasn't so much the fight with Conor that was overwhelming, it was my change in lifestyle as a UFC champion that was overwhelming for me.
“If I could look back, I would have given myself some time to process it before actually fighting as the defending champion.”
Being a UFC champion has countless benefits for a fighter and their family, but that extra attention from the media and a broader fan base is something athletes continue to struggle with.
“The whole whirlwind of media obligations and everything, I never wanted any of it – I wanted money, and I wanted the belt, but I didn't understand that world of media, or having to be somewhere and talk, talk, talk about a fight. ”
While Alvarez “forgave” himself for such a poor performance at UFC 205, he also acknowledged that it's difficult to think that a portion of the fanbase only knew he was getting knocked out.
“It's very difficult because that's how you're defined by a large audience, because they may have only seen you once… I'll never really be able to process it in a good way, but it happened.
“It was an experience that I had, and fight week was fun, the build-up was fun, I would have liked to compete better.”
Eddie Alvarez offers to buy out the TV rights to his MMA career
Alvarez returns to combat sports action on January 25 against former UFC fighter Jeremy Stephens at BKFC: Knuckle Mania 5, but will now also be taking on his former promotion.
Following the recent revelation that the Bellator MMA promotion is “dead,” Alvarez has offered to buy out the TV rights to his esteemed career.
“Hey Bellator MMA, I thought this would be a good time to negotiate the rights to my fights that I had during my time there,” Alvarez wrote on X (Twitter) late last night.
“I would like to offer a total of $7 dollars and I would be willing to go up to $10 if you include a signed poster of Bjorn Rebney.”
Perhaps the best Bellator fight in history was Alvarez's first crazy showdown with Michael Chandler, with 'The Underground King' even calling on his former rival to help him with the rights.
“Fun, fun times,” Alvarez said under a video of their 2011 scrap: “If you want to buy the rights to this fight so our kids can have them, I just offered Bellator $7 dollars.”
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