Eddie Alvarez Concussed, Out Of Bellator 120 Main Event Against Michael Chandler

It looks like Bellator’s inaugural pay-per-view (PPV) event just can’t seem to get off the ground. According to a source close to Sherdog, lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez has been injured and will be unable to compete in his main event trilogy bout against Michael Chandler at May 17’s Bellator 120 from the Landers Center in Southaven, Mississippi.

After the initial rumor, MMA Fighting confirmed that Alvarez had indeed suffered a concussion that has forced him off the card.

The news obviously comes as a huge blow for the promotion, as Alvarez vs. Chandler III was undoubtedly the biggest match they could have put together.

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Alvarez regained the belt from Chandler with a rousing split decision win at last November’s Bellator 106, an event that was originally slated to be the company’s first PPV before Tito Ortiz was forced out of his proposed main event against Quinton Rampage” Jackson.

The unfortunate finding is just the latest setback for Alvarez, who returned from a long layoff to avenge his 2011 loss to Chandler, which is highly regarded as one of the best MMA bouts of all-time.

Chandler will still fight on the card, as surging contender Will Brooks has stepped in to replace Alvarez. But all of the luster and allure of the headlining grudge match has been plucked from the card, making any marked degree of PPV buys highly unlikely at this point.

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Bellator 120 will still feature the “Rampage” vs. “King Mo” match-up, a fight has that has been hyped up as being fueled by “bad blood” despite seeming a bit forced and contrived at times.

Ortiz will also return to face Bellator middleweight champion Alexander “Storm” Shlemenko, but are those two fights you are willing to shell out 35 dollars for?