Eddie Alvarez Suggests UFC Might Cut Michael Chandler, Invites Rival to BKFC

Former UFC Champ Eddie Alvarez is open to a trilogy bout with Michael Chandler in the BKFC.

Christopher De Santiago | Jan 3, 2025

Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Eddie Alvarez could see a world where he and Michael Chandler settle their trilogy once and for all.

Alvarez fought Chandler nearly 15 years ago, losing their first bout in Bellator before later getting revenge against his rival in 2013.

All tied up at 1-1, Alvarez and Chandler never finished out the series and went their separate ways with Alvarez signing with the UFC, later becoming champ there in 2016 and Chandler sticking with Bellator as a three-time titleholder.

Eddie Alvarez Suggests UFC Might Cut Michael Chandler, Invites Rival to BKFC

UFC's Eddie Alvarez. / Raj Mehta-Imagn Images

(Exclusive) Eddie Alvarez Talks Heated Faceoff with Jeremy Stephens, Non-Champion Dig

Two Different Roads For The Rivals

A decade later, Chandler's now in the UFC and Alvarez has taken off the gloves entirely with a BKFC homecoming on the horizon in Philadelphia vs. fellow ex-UFC star Jeremy Stephens on Jan. 25.

Despite his championship pedigree in Bellator, Chandler never went on to win a UFC title like Alvarez, going 2-4 against the top dogs of the lightweight division.

"I think he has all the tools to win the UFC title. It’s a matter of whether he uses the tools he has, and I don’t think he has properly," Alvarez said of Chandler's run in the UFC in an interview with MMA Junkie. "I don’t know why. It’s very frustrating for me to watch because I know what he’s capable of, and what kind of grit and champion spirit he has."

Chandler's only lost to elite-level fighters in his run that began in 2021, holding out for a Conor McGregor fight (that never happened) for two years before suffering a repeat loss to former champion Charles Oliveira at UFC 309 in November.

UFC's Michael Chandler. / Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Alvarez On Chandler: "He Can Maybe Get Cut..."

While Chandler has been all-action since bursting onto the UFC scene, the former Bellator champion's only wins in the company are over Dan Hooker (2021) and a winless Tony Ferguson (2022), leading Alvarez to think Chandler's future may not be so safe.

"Let him fight again and if he's on the same trajectory and he loses again, he can maybe get cut," Alvarez said of Chandler. "[If] they don't want him, and then just come over to bare knuckle [boxing] and let's do it with no gloves. I think that's the kind of violence this world needs right now. It's too safe."

Fan-favorites to the bitter core, some fans suggest Michael Chandler and Eddie Alvarez's best fights are the ones they had against each other in 2011 and 2013. With 4 oz. gloves on, Alvarez and Chandler gave Bellator an all-timer, engaging in the ultimate slugfest. Now, just imagine that but with bare fists - a decade later.

The MMA community has clamored for a trilogy bout between Chandler and Alvarez for ages now, but it's hard to imagine the UFC would cut a company man in Chandler, who lost out on the biggest superfight money can buy with Conor McGregor last year.