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Former MMA champion Eddie Alvarez explains why he lost interest in the planned boxing match against Oscar De La Hoya.

2021 seems to be the bigger year for boxing crossovers. A few weeks ago reports of a supposed July bout between Oscar De La Hoya and Eddie Alvarez came about.

Here’s what the former UFC and Bellator champion said at the time:

Oscar De La Hoya and them guys have been reaching out and, hell, I’d love to get in there and mix it up with him. That’d be a hell of a fight and I’ve got everyone here in Philadelphia backing me, and the whole Philadelphia boxing [community] to back me up.

But after seeing how the Jake Paul-Ben Askren fight unfolded a few weeks ago, Alvarez felt his interest dwindle. As he explained during the recent ONE on TNT IV media day, seeing how MMA fighters are mostly doing the crossover is a bit bothersome for him.

“I would say it’s a dead issue for right now,” Alvarez said of the talked about De La Hoya matchup. “Honestly, the whole boxing-MMA thing, when I watched it with Ben and…

“Basically, what I watched was a bunch of MMA fighters in the realm of boxing who had the heart, the courage, and were able to have the humility to put themselves on the line in a form and skill that they’re not professionals in and go and put it out there.

“I have yet to see a boxer come and do that in the MMA realm. And it’s kind of bothering me, it put me off. I’d like to see the courage on the boxing side, for a guy to step into the MMA realm.”

After having some time to mull it over, Alvarez feels he may have spoken too soon. He also gave his candid and expectedly biased opinions on the boxing vs. MMA discussion, which has been amplified as of late.

“I felt like when we were saying yes to the Oscar thing, I felt like maybe I was making a decision too quickly,” he said.

“This is my sport. This is what I’ve done my whole life. And if you want a real fight, this is a fight. MMA is a fight. Boxing is a fifth of what we do. It’s a part of it. It’s not a fight. It’s boxing. MMA is a fight. It’s everything.

“Whoever beat Ben Askren, whoever beat Frank Mir, they didn’t beat them in a fight. They beat them in boxing.”

After the controversial outcome of his fight against Iuri Lapicus early this month, the 37-year-old Alvarez will return to action on Wednesday against Ok Rae Yoon.

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TJ Dillashaw has on the sidelines for a long time, and that stay is likely to continue even further. The former Bantamweight champion last competed in January 2019, getting knocked out by Henry Cejudo on fight night and USADA a couple weeks later. His EPO usage banned him from competition for two years, but since regaining eligibility, Dillashaw is eager to make his return.

Unfortunately for Dillashaw, a clash of heads has resulted in a nasty cut just above his right eye. “I’m sad to say that I have to be pulled from my fight on May 8th due to a cut received from a head butt while drilling,” Dillashaw wrote on Instagram. “Rescheduling the fight as soon as possible.”

Based on Dillashaw’s caption, he’s hoping to remain booked against Sandhagen. UFC has yet to make a statement, however, and with UFC Vegas 26 just 11 days away, there is a chance the promotion opts to find a short-notice replacement rather than remove “The Sandman.”

Insomnia

There’s still lots of fallout emerging from Chris Weidman’s leg break, so get accustomed to that uncomfortable pit in your stomach that comes from thinking about it.

I am FEELING the rhythm of this clip.

Khamzat Chimaev really wants to fight a big name opponent coming in off either 1) a multi-year layoff or 2) a brutal knockout loss. I am reminded of Brendan Schaub’s attempted path up the ranks …

“The Mountain That Rides” Thor Bjornsson works the back:

Diego Sanchez is upset with UFC for allegedly leaving him stranded at the airport. This is a tough one, as we must determine which incredibly possible situation is more likely: UFC doing something scummy or Sanchez being out-of-touch with reality?

The Florida fans booing Zhang Weili and Kamaru Usman for … reasons … was an ugly (if not shocking) moment for the sport.

If Valentina Shevchenko scores three more title defenses, does she snap her fingers and erase half her division?

Slips, rips, and KO clips

I never thought I was see the rarely utilized footlock counter to an omoplata finish someone in an MMA fight. Wild!

Teep to the face!

Even from this brief clip, it’s clear Polygalov was mixing his targets well.

Random Land

Best clip ever.

Midnight Music: Do you love funk and soul music from the ‘60s/70s? I humbly recommend Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings, who produced several great albums in that vein between 2003 and 2017.

Sleep well Maniacs! More martial arts madness is always on the way.

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is bringing more “Prelims” fights to ESPN+/ESPN2 this weekend (Sat., May 1, 2021) when UFC Vegas 25: “Reyes vs. Prochazka” returns to UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada. MMAmania.com’s Patrick Stumberg continues the UFC Vegas 25 “Prelims” party with the second (and final) installment of a two-part undercard preview series below.

After controversially failing to take the Light Heavyweight title from Jon Jones and subsequently falling to Jan Blachowicz, Dominick Reyes will try to turn aside Czech finishing machine Jiri Prochazka in UFC Vegas 25’s main event inside UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada. In addition, kickboxing ace Giga Chikadze looks to keep his unbeaten Octagon record intact against a resurgent Cub Swanson and venerable Middleweight contender Krzysztof Jotko fights to stop Sean Strickland’s unexpected rise through the ranks.

Three “Prelims” undercard bouts remain to be examined (check out the first batch here), but we’ve rectified that below …

115 lbs.: Randa Markos vs. Luana Pinheiro

Randa Markos (10-10-1) spent her first five years in the Octagon alternating losses and wins, with only a draw against Marina Rodriguez spoiling the pattern. Though she’s since managed to buck the trend, she did so in the wrong direction, and she enters the cage this Saturday having lost three straight.

“Quiet Storm” will enjoy a 1.5-inch reach advantage over the Brazilian.

Six consecutive first-round finishes carried Luana Pinheiro (8-1) to “Contender Series,” where she squared off against longtime veteran Stephanie Frausto. She kept the streak alive by smashing Frausto with first-round punches to secure a UFC contract.

Her seven stoppage wins include five by submission.

The thing about Markos is that she’s not a bad fighter — she’s a decent one who keeps having to fight very good ones. Yeah, she’s dropped three straight and is 2-5-1 in her last eight, but six of those opponents are currently in the Top 15 and one of the others was a blue-chip prospect in Kanako Murata.

In short, if Pinheiro isn’t the talent she appears to be, Markos absolutely has the skills to spoil her debut.

That’s a big “if,” though. Between her judo pedigree and newly discovered bomb of a right hand, Pinheiro really looks like one to watch. Markos may be durable enough to avoid the one-hitter quitter, but Pinheiro figures to find her neck before too long.

Prediction: Pinheiro via first round submission

145 lbs.: Gabriel Benitez vs. Jonathan Pearce

A 5-2 UFC start gave way to two consecutive losses for Gabriel Benitez (22-8), falling to rising prospects Sodiq Yusuff and Omar Morales. He returned to form in Dec. 2020 with a vicious knee knockout of Justin Jaynes, earning his second “Performance of the Night” bonus in the process.

“Moggly” stands four inches shorter than Jonathan Pearce (10-4) at 5’8.”

“JSP” put the hurt on Jacob Rosales to graduate on the Contender Series, but a blitz from Joe Lauzon ended his subsequent Octagon debut in just 93 seconds. He dropped to 145 for his sophomore effort, which saw him pound out heavily favored late replacement Kai Kamaka III.

That win marked his ninth professional finish and his eighth by form of knockout.

Pearce really surprised me against Kamaka — the Hawaiian is a genuine top-flight wrestler and Pearce ate him alive on the mat. That persistence figures to pay dividends here, as despite Benitez’s obvious improvements throughout his lengthy UFC tenure, his kick-heavy offense and tendency to get backed against the fence seemingly play right into Pearce’s hands.

“Moggly” does have a considerable edge on the feet and a clear target in Pearce’s vulnerable lead leg, but “JSP’s” durability is nothing to scoff at. In the end, expect him to steadily smother Benitez in takedown attempts and relentless ground-and-pound for an increasingly one-sided decision.

Prediction: Pearce via unanimous decision

145 lbs.: Kai Kamaka III vs. T.J. Brown

Kai Kamaka III (8-3) — who opened his professional career 2-2 — won five straight in King of The Cage (KOTC), Bellator and LFA before winning a “Fight of the Night” war with Tony Kelley in his Octagon debut. He wasn’t quite as successful his next time out, succumbing to Jonathan Pearce’s ground-and-pound late in the second.

He gives up two inches of height and 4.5 inches of reach to T.J. Brown (14-8).

“Downtown” extended his finishing streak to four with a third-round submission of Dylan Lockard on “Contender Series” to earn a spot in UFC. He’s yet to taste victory in the Octagon, suffering a comeback submission loss to Jordan Griffin and getting his leg torn up by Danny Chavez en route to a unanimous decision defeat.

Thirteen of his professional wins, including all of them since 2016, have come inside the distance.

I’ve flip-flopped on this one a lot more than I thought I would. Both men have painfully glaring flaws that undercut their impressive technical acumen, namely Kamaka’s gas tank and Brown’s durability. After seeing their most recent efforts, however, Kamaka’s key weakness seems the more damning. Pearce had him exhausted by the middle of the second round and Brown can be every bit as relentless with his takedown attack.

While Kamaka does have more pop than his one career finish would suggest, Brown withstood a lot more punishment from Chavez than Kamaka can inflict, and Kamaka can’t rely on his own takedowns against a scrambler this good. An initially even fight gets ever more lopsided as Brown racks up takedowns and saps Kamaka’s cardio for a late finish.

Prediction: Brown via third round submission

There are some egregiously violent match ups on UFC Vegas 25’s card that you absolutely do not want to miss. See you Saturday, Maniacs.

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Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Vegas 25 fight card this weekend, starting with the ESPN+/ESPN2 “Prelims” matches, which are scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. ET, then the remaining main card balance on ESPN+/ESPN2 at 10 p.m. ET.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC Vegas 25: “Reyes vs. Prochazka” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.

Current UFC “Prelims” Prediction Record for 2021: 62-28 (1 NC)

Cory Sandhagen’s bout against TJ Dillashaw on May 8 is off.

The return of TJ Dillashaw has been put on hold.

One of Cory Sandhagen’s training partners, Justin Wetzell, first tweeted that the former UFC bantamweight champion was out of their upcoming bout on May 8 due to a cut suffered during a training session.

Shortly thereafter, MMA Junkie’s Mike Bohn shed new light into the matter and said the fight wasn’t off just yet, but Dillashaw has since confirmed his withdrawal from the contest.

After a two-year USADA suspension due to testing positive for EPO and HGH, TJ Dillashaw was finally cleared to return in January 2021. His career was put on hold following a TKO defeat to then flyweight champion Henry Cejudo, in January 2019. Before that, the 35-year-old was on a four-fight winning streak, with victories over Cody Garbrandt twice, John Lineker, and Raphael Assuncao.

In his last outing, Cory Sandhagen (14-2) picked up a highlight reel flying knee knockout win over Frankie Edgar, back in February. The victory started a new streak for the ‘Sandman’, after he had already TKO’d Marlon Moraes in October 2020. The 29-year-old’s last loss happened in June of the same year, when he got quickly submitted by current bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling.

As far as what the new main event will be for UFC Vegas 26, ESPN’s Ariel Helwani reports that strawweight contenders Michelle Waterson and Marina Rodriguez are the frontrunners to be the new headliners.