It was inevitable, both for contractual reasons and the epic back-and-forth show the two fighters have repeatedly put on, that new Bellator lightweight champ Eddie Alvarez and ex-champ Michael Chandler would meet again to complete the trilogy. Now, according to the promotion’s president Bjorn Rebney, Alvarez vs. Chandler III is likely to be a pay-per-view event.
Rebney confirmed his intentions to MMA Junkie, saying that the pair’s third fight was destined for PPV “unless I have my brains removed.”
“I mean, please. How could you not?” he added.
There is so much drama and intrigue involved in the fights between Alvarez and Chandler, both inside and outside the cage, that having them slug it out for the third time on PPV makes perfect sense for Bellator.
Indeed, the rematch between the two, which went down at Bellator 106 on Saturday, was originally meant to be a PPV event headlined by two former UFC fighters—Tito Ortiz and Quinton Jackson. However, an injury to Ortiz led to the decision to air the event free on Spike TV and move the Alvarez vs. Chandler rematch to the main event.
The first fight between the two, which took place in 2011, was arguably the fight of the year, with Chandler upsetting the odds and taking the title from the man many considered the best 155-pound fighter outside the UFC.
After that fight, Alvarez fought two more times for Bellator before attempting to move to the UFC. Thereafter, a bitter contractual dispute began involving the three parties, with Bellator determined to keep their former champion presumably to stage a rematch against Chandler.
The contractual dispute was eventually cleared up this August, with media reports suggesting that Alvarez would have to fight Chandler a second time. If he lost again, he would be a free agent, but if he won, he’d have to fight his opponent a third time before likely moving on to the UFC.
In such a scenario, it’s in Bellator’s interest for Chandler to win back the title before the promotion lets go of its troublesome lightweight. With that in mind—considering there is so much riding on this fight for Bellator, not to mention the epic contests the two fighters have already put on—a PPV event to complete the trilogy seems completely fitting.
When that will take place is yet to be determined.
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