Former UFC and Bellator champion Eddie Alvarez believes that winning the ONE championship belt would make him the greatest lightweight ever.
Alvarez returns to the cage next week at ONE on TNT 1 when he takes on Iuri Lapicus, with the winner next in line to fight for the ONE lightweight title. Alvarez, of course, is also the former UFC lightweight champion and the former Bellator lightweight champion, so winning a third belt in a major organization would make give him the rare “triple crown” in MMA.
Speaking to TMZ Sports, Alvarez said that he believes winning the ONE lightweight title would give him the resume he needs to say he’s the greatest MMA lightweight ever.
“I mean, I think in my eyes I’d be the greatest lightweight that ever lived. It’s fine to be great for five years, it’s even good to be great for 10 years. But for two decades, to continue to fight champions all over the world. I’m not staying in one place, I’m not staying in one promotion. I’m going to all parts of the world and fighting every champion from every major promotion and becoming the champion on that platform. No one has done it, no one will ever do it. You have to be as crazy as I am,” Alvarez said.
“But I love this sport and it’s one fight at a time. It’s one fight at a time, and that’s how I’ve done it. As many belts as I collet and as many champions as I’ve defeated, it will be argued, but I’ll just tell people to check the scoreboard, you know what I mean? I don’t want to argue it. Check the scoreboard. Let’s accumulate the data and check the scoreboard. Then we’ll talk about who’s the greatest lightweight that ever lived.”
Do you agree with Eddie Alvarez?