Former Bellator MMA lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez has re-signed with the promotion and will look to avenge his loss to current champ Michael Chandler in an anticipated rematch at a Nov. 2 pay-per-view event.
The fight will serve as the co-main event for Bellator’s first venture into the PPV market. The show is scheduled to be headlined by a battle of former UFC light-heavyweight champions Quinton (Rampage) Jackson and Tito Ortiz.
Following a massive head-kick knockout of Patricky Freire at Bellator 76 in Windsor, Ont., last October, Alvarez agreed in principle to a contract with the UFC since that fight served as the last one on his Bellator deal.
However, Bellator invoked a clause in his Alvarez’s contract that gave the promotion the right to match any offer in order to re-sign Alvarez.
The deal with the UFC reportedly included a share of PPV revenue, but since Bellator had never previously hosted a PPV event, Alvarez and his team argued that Bellator could not truly match the UFC’s offer and it resulted in two lawsuits being filed.
As the legal battle ensued, it kept one of the best 155-pounders in mixed martial arts on the sidelines in limbo.
“I still lose sleep over my loss to Chandler, and I want it off my record,” Alvarez, who was submitted by Chandler in the fourth round of their Bellator 58 main event in November 2011, said in a press release Tuesday.
“This was a long process, but at the end of the day I’m back with Bellator and I’m happy to get back in the cage. I really believe everything happens for a reason, and at the end of the day my family and I are happy, and I’m ready to get my belt back on November 2nd.”
Alvarez (24-3) has won two straight fights, including a TKO of Shinya Aoki, and has lost just once since 2009. When he returns to the cage it will have been 13 months since he last competed.
Chandler (12-0) has picked up three victories since finishing Alvarez. The unbeaten champion knocked out Akihiro Gono in 56 seconds at Bellator 67, submitted Rick Hawn in just over three minutes at Bellator 85, and knocked out David Rickels in 44 seconds last month at Bellator 97.
“I’ve been cageside for more live fights than almost anyone on the planet. Without question, Chandler vs. Alvarez was the best MMA fight I’ve ever seen. I’m excited to be able to deliver this rematch to MMA fans,” Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney said.
“It’s been a long time coming and we’ve had to jump over a lot of hurdles to get this done, but from the day we announced our PPV I promised fans that this card was going to be the deepest we’ve ever done, and we are well on our way. This is just the start.”
Watch their epic Bellator 58 battle below:
“Without sounding too disrespectful, when I fought Eddie the first time in 2011, I didn’t even know what it meant to be an MMA fighter,” Chandler said. “Two years later, I’ve grown so much as a mixed martial artist, and there isn’t a doubt in my mind on November 2nd, my hand will be raised and the belt will be around my waist.
“I have full confidence that I can take this fight wherever I want, whenever I want because I didn’t even show much of my wrestling in that last fight and I was able to beat him just with my standup. My ground game has always been there, and I’ve taken my striking to a whole new level since the last time we met. I feel like I have more experience under my belt, I’m wiser, stronger, and have had so much time in the gym trying to become the best fighter I can be.”
Currently, no other bouts have been added to the event that takes place at The Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center in Long Beach, Calif.
Rebney has said that he expects there to be multiple championship bouts on the card, so the likes of featherweight champ Pat Curran, welterweight champ Ben Askren and bantamweight champ Eduardo Dantas could all potentially wind up on the card.
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