Eddie Alvarez signs with UFC, meets Donald Cerrone at UFC 178
Just like that, Eddie Alvarez, is in the UFC. And just like that, he’s got the fight that was rumored for him if – or when, as it turns out – he signed with the promotion.
Alvarez (25-3 MMA, 0-0 UFC), the former Bellator MMA lightweight champion, has signed with the UFC, the promotion today announced, and will face Donald Cerrone (24-6 MMA, 11-3 UFC) at UFC 178 next month.
Earlier today, Bellator announced it had released Alvarez after a lengthy dispute with the promotion – but one that still had him re-signing with the organization this past year and challenging Michael Chandler for the lightweight title in a rematch, a fight he won.
UFC 178 takes place Sept. 27 at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on FOX Sports 1 and UFC Fight Pass.
Cerrone had been booked to fight Bobby Green (23-5 MMA, 4-0 UFC) at UFC 178 – a fight Green was moved into from a previous booking with Jorge Masvidal, who was then booked to face James Krause. Now without an opponent, Green, UFC officials said, will be moved to a different fight on a later card.
Cerrone is riding one of the hottest streaks in UFC lightweight history – maybe not based on total number of wins, but at least based on how he’s going about things. “Cowboy†has won four straight since an upset loss to Rafael dos Anjos nearly a year ago, and he’s won all four by stoppage – getting fight-night bonuses in each one.
At UFC 167, he choked out Evan Dunham for a “Submission of the Night†win. At UFC on FOX 10 in January, he stopped Adriano Martins with a head kick in the first for “Knockout of the Night.†And with finishes of Edson Barboza (submission) and Jim Miller (another head-kick KO), he won “Performance of the Night†awards.
A win over the likes of Alvarez would make a huge case for the popular fighter and former WEC title challenger to get a lightweight title shot. Conversely, a win over “Cowboy†for Alvarez, along with his resume in Bellator as the champion there, would have him potentially clamoring for the winner of champ Anthony Pettis, who defends his title against former Strikeforce champ Gilbert Melendez later this year.
When Alvarez signed with Bellator in 2009 for its first event, he was considered one of the best lightweights in the world not with a major promotion. 15-2 at the time, he was coming off a submission loss to Shinya Aoki for DREAM. With three straight submissions, he won Bellator’s Season 1 lightweight tournament and its 155-pound title.
While waiting for challengers to emerge in Bellator’s tournament format, he fought for DREAM again, then beat Josh Neer and Roger Huerta for Bellator in non-title bouts before taking a unanimous decision from future featherweight champion Pat Curran.
But it was his first fight with Chandler that he’s best known for. The two fought at Bellator 58 in November 2011, with Chandler ultimately taking the belt with a fourth-round rear-naked choke. The fight was considered by many to be the best of 2011 – even after Dan Henderson beat Mauricio “Shogun†Rua the next night at UFC 139.
Alvarez got some revenge against Aoki when he stopped him in the first round at Bellator 66, then beat Patricky “Pitbull†Freire at Bellaotr 76 before his long legal battle with the promotion started. When he returned, it was in the rematch with Chandler, and he took his belt back with a split decision.
With the addition, the latest UFC 178 card now includes:
Demetrious Johnson vs. Chris Cariaso
Eddie Alvarez vs. Donald Cerrone
Conor McGregor vs. Dustin Poirier
Tim Kennedy vs. Yoel Romero
Amanda Nunes vs. Cat Zingano
Dominick Cruz vs. Takeya Mizugaki
James Krause vs. Jorge Masvidal
Patrick Cote vs. Stephen Thompson
Brian Ebersole vs. John Howard
Kevin Lee vs. Jon Tuck
Manny Gamburyan vs. Cody Gibson
