Eddie Alvarez requests ‘easier fight’ against Conor McGregor

UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez called out Conor McGregor shortly after winning his new title with a first-round victory over Rafael dos Anjos on Thursday night.

Your teams. Your favorite writers. Wherever you want them. Personalize SI with our new App. Install on iOS or Android.​

UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez called out Conor McGregor shortly after winning his new title with a first-round victory over Rafael dos Anjos on Thursday night.

“I would ask [UFC president] Dana White, ‘Please give me an easier fight like Conor McGregor,’” Alvarez said, according to ESPN. “I deserve that. I’ve been fighting the best guys, so I would like a gimme fight. So, Conor, I’d more than welcome that.”

Alvarez has won his three most recent fights, against dos Anjos, former champion Anthony Pettis and Gilbert Melendez. 

McGregor knocked out Jose Aldo in December to claim the featherweight belt. He was seeking to take the lightweight title as well, but his fight against dos Anjos was called off after dos Anjos pulled out with a foot injury. McGregor instead fought a welterweight bout against Nate Diaz, which he lost.

“Look, there’s a lot of guys in the UFC who are good at one thing, and they get matched up stylistically well,” Alvarez said. “They make their way to the top without ever going against the true best guys in the division. They sneak their way around them, and they live off perception, not what really is. [McGregor] is one of them. I think he can get found out. If he was ever to fight Rafael Dos Anjos or to fight myself, he'd get found out very quickly.”

McGregor’s next scheduled fight is a rematch against Diaz, which will be the main event at UFC 202 on Aug. 20.