UFC 205: Eddie Alvarez embraces the hate, and will look to use it against Conor McGregor

Eddie Alvarez (UPI)

There are many saying that UFC 205 is “The Conor McGregor Show”. He himself believes he is the true king of MMA. UFC Lightweight Champion Eddie Alvarez doesn’t care what others have to say, especially McGregor. He’s coming into New York City this Saturday to make an impact inside Madison Square Garden. He has a great shot at shutting up all the haters, and expanding his legacy in the world of MMA.

Alvarez has worked on proving people wrong his entire career. The 32-year old from Philadelphia fought for various promotions, garnering the nickname “The Underground King” by fans for all the effort he puts into his fights, even if it went unnoticed by some. One promotion that sticks out was his Bellator run from 2009-2013. He had a 10-1 career there and won the Lightweight Title twice. He was not happy there however, and nearly lost two years of his career due to a contract dispute with the company. When he signed with the UFC in 2014, opportunities were given and he was sure to take them.

Right away, Alvarez was going against the best the company had to offer. He lost his first fight for the company at UFC 178 against Donald Cerrone. After that, he went on to beat his next three opponents. He beat Gilbert Melendez, Anthony Pettis and Rafael Dos Anjos, the latter of which he won the UFC Lightweight Title from. His first title defense will be against “The Notorious One” Conor McGregor, but unlike McGregor’s other opponents, Alvarez is not even worried.

When the announcement was made, Alvarez didn’t flinch. He had a calm aura about him at the UFC 205 Press Conference, like he never once felt threatened. Yesterday, Conor was late (again) to a press conference, and Eddie was not going to play his game. He waited in the back, and once McGregor returned, the fireworks began. McGregor took Eddie’s title, and the next few minutes could be summed up as an old school WWE brawl, filled with curse words and chairs.

httpss://twitter.com/ufc/status/796810835356061696

Well, that was unexpected, but fun. You could tell the mind games wouldn’t work for McGregor. When he stole Jose Aldo’s title, he didn’t do anything about it. Eddie made sure to send the message that he’s taking control of the narrative. As a wrestler, Eddie can use that to his advantage in the early rounds. If he can keep McGregor guessing, he might have a shot at successfully defending his title.

In regards to the opportunity in front of him, Alvarez was pretty confident, telling MMA Fighting he would land that one big punch to knock out McGregor. He‘s just living in the moment, stating:

“Magic, pure magic. Look, I fought 13 years to put my life to put myself on this stage, in front of the biggest crowd, and I am super-excited to go out there and do something violent, and do something high-paced.”

He believes he deserves that big break, according to a Rolling Stone interview. Alvarez also believes this whole thing is a sideshow, and he can’t wait to fight real contenders instead of the guy who has a “funny accent and sells tickets.” He’s tired of the games and is ready to delete Conor from his mind.

McGregor has a huge shot at making history, and Eddie Alvarez will be happy to stop him dead in his tracks. Eddie’s been a fighter his entire life, and this is just another day in the office for him.