Eddie Alvarez made history at UFC Fight Night 90.
With Alvarez's impressive victory over UFC Lightweight Champion Rafael dos Anjos, Alvarez became the first man to ever hold Bellator and UFC Championships – succeeding where Hector Lombard, Ben Henderson, Tito Ortiz, and Zach Makovsky have been unable to.
Alvarez's victory opens up a plethora of options atop the division. Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson are still options, of course, but Donald Cerrone and Nate Diaz have now re-entered the conversation. Both men were soundly defeated by dos Anjos,. Cerrone holds a victory over Eddie Alvarez, and Nate Diaz is a perennial contender, regardless of wins or losses due to his popularity.
After winning the UFC Lightweight Championship, Alvarez welcomed what he called an 'easy' fight with Conor McGregor when speaking at the post-fight press conference
“This guy (dos Anjos) to the right of me, is the best in the division. To be able to come out with a win over him and before him was (Anthony) Pettis, before him was Gilbert (Melendez). These are the best guys in the division. I’m not taking on top 15 guys. I would ask Dana White please to give me an easier fight like Conor McGregor. I deserve that. I’ve been fighting the best guys. I would like a gimme fight. So, Conor? I more than welcome that.”
Now that Alvarez is in the UFC, he has a ton of huge fights ahead of him. While things got rough for him mentally towards the end of his Bellator run, he knows he belongs.
“This has always been like a marathon for me, not a sprint,” Alvarez said. “Everybody was always asking, ‘When are you going to go to the UFC?’ and telling me what I should do and when I should do it. I just think, if you work hard enough and love something, these belts are a byproduct of it. This will not be here forever, but just working hard and doing something you’re passionate about is important. Right now, we have the belt and I’m the champion. I told a lot of people I would be. I’m happy.”
