Under söndagen ägde “One Championship – A New Era” rum, vilket var organisationen ONE Championships största gala hittills. Förutom 4 stycken titelmatcher bjöd galan även på debuterna för de forna UFC-mästarna Demetrious Johnson och Eddie Alvarez.
Johnsons match slutade i seger över japanen Yuya Wakamatsu via submission i andra ronden. Det gick dock inte lika bra för den forne lättviktsmästaren Alvarez då han fick se sig avslutad via knockout av ryssen Timofey Nastyukhin i första ronden. Matchen var Alvarez 2:a raka förlust sedan han besegrade Justin Gaethje under UFC 218.
Nu har Alvarez släppt ett uttalande via instagram där han meddelar sina tankar om förlusten. Han anser sig varit för passiv i matchen och han tror det var det som var den största anledningen till att han förlorade. Han berättade även att han efter ett slag tappade synen i ögat och att båda ögonlocken spräcktes.
Hey guys First and foremost congrats to Timofey in his victory , He is very deserving of everything that comes with victory and I wish him the best in the continued tournament . Honestly speaking how I fought my One Championship debut is not a reflection of my training my coaches , my team , it’s not even a reflection of my beliefs . I am sincerely disappointed and confused in my inability to not pull the trigger and my hesitancy on recent fight nights , it’s been quite confusing to figure out the past year or so . Coach Mark always stresses “hesitancy is Death” and it’s not something that is even in my character to do . In this particular fight I waited too long for an opening and paid the ultimate price . The punch that hit me , instantly blinded me and split both eyelids in half . It felt like my eye exploded from the inside and the pain was instant . From an outsider watching myself I should of have expected the result considering my actions . You have to punch , kick , takedown and pressure to win a fight , I waited . I simply waited too long for the correct timing and opening that never came . Fighting continues to teach me life lessons thru my victories and even more through tough defeats . Victory and defeat are by products of putting it on the line , they have been inescapable throughout my whole life . I hope to be judged on how I adjust and pivot from defeat and behave in victory rather than the result of a small moment in time . To my Wife /kids family , coaches , teams mates , friends and to all the fans , thank you always for your continued support , doing this is very lonely and isolated , a simple pat on the back goes a long long way . Thank you thank you thank you . I will make adjustments and come back true to form 👊🏼👊🏼👊🏼👊🏼 #UGK
ONE Championship – A New Era ägde rum den 31:a mars i Tokyo, Japan. I galans huvudmatch lyckades Shinya Aoki besegra Eduard Folayang och därmed bli ny lättviktsmästare i organisationen.
