These next cards running into November and December through the end of the year, all feel like Christmas. We’ve made it through some rough times and kept on trucking, the UFC will be rewarding us for keeping the faith. Just one of these fights we’ll be given the pleasure of seeing is Justin Gaethje going to war with Eddie Alvarez to potentially decide the next number one contender for the UFC lightweight title. Former champ Alvarez recently opened up about things that he felt held him back in his previous fights.

“In my mind, I’m just looking, for myself, I just don’t feel like I’ve fought my best fight in the UFC yet. I feel like I’m having a moment now where I want to say that I’m not giving a f-ck and I feel like the less I give a f-ck, the better I fight. I think I cared a bit too much, even in my title fight [against Rafael dos Anjos] which I won, I just cared a little bit too much and I didn’t risk enough. I just want to approach the game where I really just don’t give a f-ck. I think I fight better that way.”

V I O L E N C E#TUF26 coaches meet at #UFC218!@EAlvarezFight takes on @Justin_Gaethje in The Motor City on Dec. 2! pic.twitter.com/zToAyLxZak

— UFC (@ufc) October 11, 2017

“I think when I entered the UFC [I started caring too much]. There was a big thing, could I compete with the best guys in the world? Could I compete with the guys in the UFC? There was that whole stigma that the guys from the smaller promotions couldn’t hang with the best guys in the UFC so I just let my surroundings and the things I was hearing affect the way I was fighting. It made me focus more on winning than on being me. I was so worried about winning and proving people wrong that I could win the UFC world title, [but] when you get focused too much on winning I don’t feel like you’re able to be your total self. I do better when I care less.” — Eddie Alvarez speaking to MMA Tonight. 

If the fight with Justin Gaethje — a guy that ran out of F-bombs to give long ago — wasn’t already one of the most exciting fights the UFC could book, Eddie Alvarez is out here claiming he’s going to throw caution to the wind in the war at UFC 218. This will be an incredible fight and anyone one of these fighters booked in a bout with Tony Ferguson and/or Conor McGregor is guaranteed chaos. UFC 218 on December 2nd is one card you’re not going to want to miss. It’s not just that fight, the entire thing is stacked.

This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 10/13/2017.