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Back in 2016, Eddie Alvarez and Conor McGregor were fierce rivals preparing for the UFC’s return to New York City after 21 years. Alvarez held the undisputed lightweight title which McGregor was chasing after to make history and become the UFC’s very first ‘champ-champ.’
“The Notorious” got the job done while Alvarez eventually left the UFC for other opportunities. That landed him in bare-knuckle boxing at BKFC 41 against Chad Mendes on Saturday, and an unexpected alliance with his former foe.
Watch Eddie Alvarez gets coaching from Conor McGregor
Alvarez and Mendes did not disappoint as the show’s co-headliners. Both scored a knockdown apiece on each other, but in the end, it was “The Underground King” who got his hand raised via split decision.
But as you’ll see in the clip below, Alvarez got a little assist from McGregor during round three of the five-round fight. The Irishman was seated ringside, yelling out instructions for an uppercut, which Alvarez heeded. After landing the shot, Alvarez went on to acknowledge his other coach from the sidelines.
During the post-event media scrum, Eddie Alvarez admitted to being slightly confused about whether or not McGregor’s instructions were for him.
“I thought he yelled uppercut for me to do it, but I overheard that he was helping (Mendes). So I think he’s playing both sides, I don’t know,” he told reporters.
Eddie Alvarez will carry on with bare-knuckle boxing
As Mendes decided to retire from prizefighting for good, Alvarez will carry on. And at this point, he plans to continue with his bare-knuckle boxing venture.
“I’ll be fighting again. I say this, because this training camp, for me, was I wanted to try something new. This is something new for me.
“I never did this before, but when you take away the wrestling and you take away the kicks, and the knees, and the elbows… I know my face looks like this, but this is gonna go away in two weeks,” he said.
The 39-year-old Alvarez spent 19 years of his life as a mixed martial artist. But for him, training for BKFC 41 was more fulfilling.
“The training camp was so… it was so much more enjoyable than an MMA training camp. Chad would know this and guys who do MMA would know this: the training camp for bare-knuckle is so enjoyable.
“I had a lot of fun, my coaches had a lot of fun learning the nuances of the sport. I took a shot, tried something new.”
Eddie Alvarez (30-8, with 2 NC in MMA) last fought inside the cage in April 2021 under ONE Championship against Ok Rae Yoon. He lost via decision.
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