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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
Eddie Alvarez is officially a free agent, opening the door to a run in the UFC.
According to a report from ESPN.com, Bellator granted Alvarez an unconditional release on Tuesday, allowing him to go nearly two years after he attempted to leave for the UFC in the first place.
"We granted Eddie his unconditional release this morning," said new Strikeforce President Scott Coker. "Eddie is free to explore the free agent market. We wish him the best in the future. After sitting down with him and getting to know him, it was just a very hurtful situation for him. I think the damage was already done. It became clear there was a wall there and it was not directed at me.
"They just made it clear the damage was done."
After competing lawsuits kept him out of action nearly a year, Alvarez reached a settlement to come back for two fights with Bellator last fall. He beat Michael Chandler in the first one, at which point he had agreed to a rematch. However, when a concussion sent him out of that fight in May, Chandler was defeated by Will Brooks, making the Chandler fight no longer sensible.
With a new regime in place, Alvarez is now being allowed the freedom to pursue a UFC run.
"This was a long process but it's a decision that everyone seems happy with," Alvarez said. "I think it's important to say that I am genuinely thankful for the time at Bellator. I know that sounds a little crazy given everything I went through, but I've fought there since 2009 and have been involved in some really amazing fights.
"The staff there always treated me great and I'm going to miss seeing a lot of those familiar faces around for sure. Myself and my team had some really good discussions with Scott, but in my heart I knew I was ready to move on and start the next chapter of my career."
Penick's Analysis: This is great news for the UFC's lightweight division, because we should be seeing Alvarez sooner rather than later, and he'll immediately plug into the mix there. He also won't be far away from a title fight. This is the right move for Bellator, as well, because he would have been gone after one more fight anyway. Now they can move ahead with a Brooks-Chandler rematch.
[Eddie Alvarez photo (c) Henry Dziekan III]
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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