Eddie Alvarez: “The Punch That Hit Me Instantly Blinded Me And Split Both Eyelids In Half”
Last year former UFC Lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez signed a contract with ONE Championship after spending nearly five years in the UFC. However in ONE debut “The Underground King” failed to produce the desired results.
Last weekend (Sun., March 31, 2019) Alvarez suffered a first-round knockout loss against Timofey Nastyukhin in the promotion’s Lightweight Grand Prix tournament at the ONE Championship “New Era” MMA event in Tokyo, Japan.
Earlier today Alvarez issues a statement on his loss and posts a gory photo of his eye that severely injured during a fight.
“Hey guys First and foremost congrats to Timofey in his victory , He is very deserving of everything that comes with victory and I wish him the best in the continued tournament . Honestly speaking how I fought my One Championship debut is not a reflection of my training my coaches , my team , it’s not even a reflection of my beliefs . I am sincerely disappointed and confused in my inability to not pull the trigger and my hesitancy on recent fight nights , it’s been quite confusing to figure out the past year or so . Coach Mark always stresses “hesitancy is Death” and it’s not something that is even in my character to do . In this particular fight I waited too long for an opening and paid the ultimate price . The punch that hit me , instantly blinded me and split both eyelids in half . It felt like my eye exploded from the inside and the pain was instant . From an outsider watching myself I should of have expected the result considering my actions . You have to punch , kick , takedown and pressure to win a fight , I waited . I simply waited too long for the correct timing and opening that never came . Fighting continues to teach me life lessons thru my victories and even more through tough defeats . Victory and defeat are by products of putting it on the line , they have been inescapable throughout my whole life . I hope to be judged on how I adjust and pivot from defeat and behave in victory rather than the result of a small moment in time . To my Wife /kids family , coaches , teams mates , friends and to all the fans , thank you always for your continued support , doing this is very lonely and isolated , a simple pat on the back goes a long long way . Thank you thank you thank you . I will make adjustments and come back true to form 👊🏼👊🏼👊🏼👊🏼 #UGK”
Eddie is for sure disappointed with his performance but to remind you he also dropped in his UFC debut but after that ‘The Underground King’ went on to capture the 155-pound title after demolishing Rafael dos Anjos back in 2016.
Alvarez is currently riding on a two-fight losing skid.
Here’s a photo of Eddie’s injured eye:
