Eddie Alvarez Discusses Pressure, 'Unearned Respect' Ahead of One Championship Debut

Former UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez has spoken about the expectations he faced ahead of his debut for One Championship after signing a lucrative multiple-bout contract with the promotion.

The 35-year-old, alongside fellow former UFC champ Demetrious Johnson, announced late last year that they had signed contracts with the Singapore-based promotion. Alvarez debuted for One in March in a quarterfinal of the promotion’s lightweight grand prix quarterfinal, and was finished by TKO in the opening round by Timofey Nastyukhin.

Alvarez told ESPN’s Ariel Helwani this week that as a former UFC champ, he felt a huge weight of expectation on him to come into One and win the tournament (transcribed via MMANews.com):

“I didn’t like the immediate attention I was getting,” Alvarez said. “I felt like it was undeserved. I didn’t get any wins under that banner. I like going into promotions kind of playing the underdog and earning my respect. So I feel like maybe that’s why I subconsciously lose my debuts in promotions, just so I can have to fight for something.

“I feel like respect is earned. It’s undeserved until you go somewhere and actually start beating guys and become the champion. I felt like there was already a lot of unearned respect there.”

“The Underground King” said his highly-lucrative deal with One, which he alleges to be eight figures, is justified despite not having won a fight with the promotion:

“You’re not paying me for a fight. You’re paying me for 16 years of doing what I’ve done,” Alvarez asserted. “So I never look at it like a here-and-now thing. I don’t get paid for my fights, for what I do for 15 minutes inside the cage. I get paid for being a lifelong martial artist, for doing this for 20 years of my life. That’s why I’m paid.”