Michael Chandler submits Eddie Alvarez to capture Bellator Lightweight Title (Recap & Full Fight Video)
Posted on November 20, 2011, 12:00 PM by Joey SantosusIn what was undoubtedly one of the best fights of 2011, Season 4 Lightweight Tournament winner Michael Chandler and defending division Champion Eddie Alvarez battered and bruised one another well into the fourth-round of last night's Bellator 58 headlining bout.
Chandler, a heavy underdog headining into the fight, got things started in a hurry, rushing Alvarez at the opening bell, dropping the champ against the cage with a flurry of punches. Though nearly stopped, Alvarez managed to regain his footing and battle back, marking the beginning of an all out war.
After appearing to regain his wits, Alvarez found success landing combinations of his own. However just as it seemed he may have done enough to make up for his near defeat earlier in the round, Chandler once again found a home for his heavy right-hand, dropping Alvarez to the mat for a second time to close out the opening stanza.
Down, but not out, the defending champ answered the bell for the second-round, which would be a closely contested stand-up battle that saw each fighter land significant shots. Ultimately, a tight frame that could have went in either man's favor on the scorecards.
In the third, Chandler appeared to noticeably slow, as Alvarez remained one step ahead, stuffing the challengers takedowns and landing combinations to take his first clear cut round of the bout.
With Chandler now heading into the the Championship rounds for the first time in his professional career, Alvarez looked to continue what he'd started in the third, shucking off a takedown attempt and landing punches in bunches. It was then, however, that Chandler uncorked a set of big right-hands that found their mark, rocking Alvarez and allowing the Xtreme Couture product to find full-mount. In a desperate attempt to avoid the impending ground and pound, Alvarez turned over, allowing Chandler to secure a rear-naked choke and force the tap.
The newly crowned Bellator Lightweight Champion extends his undefeated streak to nine consecutive fights and will await the promotion's next tournament winner to make his first title defense. Alvarez, meanwhile, suffers just his third career loss, falling to 22-3 overall.
Comments
Bellator, UFC and M1 had some great fights and finishes!!! good day for MMA!!!
I called this fight of the year,
untill I saw Dan Henderson vs. Shogun later that night
Both looked good but I have ALWAYS said Alvarez is extremely overated, no way top 5 and borderline in the top 10. He would get killed by Frankie, Maynard, Henderson, Guida, Miller, Guillard, Cerrone, Melendez and probably more
Alvarez is not overated, Chandler was underated if anything. LW is the most talented division in mma, I could see both Chandler and Alvarez doing well in the UFC and beating some of the guys you just mentioned, but yeah i can see them losing too. Alvarez losing is a good thing for Bellator imo, because it means their singing and finding good talent, if they can continue doing that their talent pool could get bigger.
Overrated or not, I really wish people would stop crashing hype trains into fighters that have large winning streaks against nobodies. Lombard, Melendez, Hioko, Alvarez, probably Chandler now too. I'd never deny the obvious talent these guys have. But I honestly don't think you can be considered top 3 until you've taken out UFC top 5 guys.
Melendez beat some really good opponents including Aoki, Kawajiri and Thompson, his next fight is against another underrated opponent
The bellator commentators said he was the #1 lightweight in the world, lol wut
To be fair, Chandler fought an amazing fight. Great heart and gameplan from the very start.
haha i thought the same thing.. those commentators are garbage i heard the phrase "best punch of the fight" at least 98 times....every ****ing punch is the best punch????
Alvarez tapped quickly. Perhaps due to force on the throat rather than constriction?
Maybe but Chandler couldn't care less now he's the champ ;)
I noticed the quick tap as well and re-watched a couple times. Just as it seems he may have locked it in, the angle changes, so it's hard to tell how deep it really was.
I watched it too and I can't tell. Alvarez has a huge heart and doesn't quit; but that was a HARD-FOUGHT war. Whether it was sunk in, or due to crushing force, or just exhaustion, it didn't look to me like Eddie was getting out of that once Chandler got his back. Just when I thought it would only be a matter of time- it was already over. I was really hoping for Eddie to win, but Chandler was a beast last night.
@ BruceLee I thought that Eddie tapped pretty quick too. Maybe he decided that he had taken enough punishment from Chandler. That guy was relentless with the pressure!
Chandler really took the fight to Eddie. It's almost like he didn't expect him to be so aggressive. Awesome bout. Perhaps now that Eddie's not the champ anymore, he can sign with the UFC & we can really see what he's made of.
Now we can all stop talking about how unbeatable Alvarez is, just like we did with Fedor when he lost, thank god.
Eddie's head was getting a little too big for his shoulders, and this loss will bring him down to earth and make him a better fighter.....