‘It Would Be Spectacular’ – Martin Nguyen Wants To Fight Eddie Alvarez At Featherweight
Former two-division ONE World Champion Martin “The Situ-Asian” Nguyen has heard rumors that Eddie “The Underground King” Alvarez would consider moving down in weight, and the 33-year-old would love to welcome the American legend to ONE’s deep featherweight MMA division.
“The Situ-Asian” believes a bout against Alvarez would provide each of them with a massive opportunity. More importantly, he loves the idea of squaring off against such a huge name in the sport.
The #3-ranked featherweight contender told ONE Championship:
“Man, I think it would be spectacular, with his experience, his caliber. I’d be more than honored to welcome him to the featherweight division. I’m sure if he gets past me, then he’ll obviously be a top-five, top-three contender for that title shot.”
Alvarez joined ONE in 2019 with the goal of winning a Lightweight World Title in a third major promotion. However, he suffered a shocking knockout loss to rising contender Timofey Nastyukhin in his debut fight.
“The Underground King” then defeated former lightweight king Eduard Folayang by submission, but he fell out of the World Title picture with a controversial no contest against Iuri Lapicus and a heartbreaking unanimous decision loss to current titleholder Ok Rae Yoon.
Despite those setbacks, Nguyen believes the 38-year-old American still has a lot to offer in MMA.
“The Situ-Asian” said:
“Eddie Alvarez is [one of] the most experienced athletes in ONE Championship at the moment. In terms of MMA, I still feel like he’s got a few more fights underneath his belt, at least a minimum of three or four fights.”
“He doesn’t really have anything to prove. He’s achieved it all. So you don’t count the old guy out until he’s completely out. I feel that I’m that person he should be fighting. I’m always ready to put my name and sign that contract. We’ll see what happens.”
Martin Nguyen Would Love A High-Profile Match On Prime Video
ONE Championship recently announced a multi-year agreement with global streaming giant Amazon Prime Video Sports, which will see at least 12 of its live events broadcast in North American prime time annually.
It’s a huge opportunity to compete in front of more fans in the United States. And with that in mind, Martin Nguyen believes Prime Video would be the perfect platform for a dream matchup against American MMA icon Eddie Alvarez.
The Vietnamese-Australian said:
“I think it’s almost like the stars aligned. If Eddie Alvarez comes down to featherweight, why not? You know, that’s perfect. He’s got all the backing behind him, the American fans. Let’s just make it happen, and I’m sure a lot of people will be tuning in.”
“I’m definitely excited about that idea. It would give me a chance to just make a statement.”
