Originally scheduled to compete yesterday in Manila, Sam Alvey’s fight versus Alex Nicholson has been rescheduled for UFC Mexico City 3 weeks later. Alvey, who will fight for the 4th time in just 5 months, was very disappointed to hear that UFC Manila was cancelled and asked the UFC for a slot on the next card.
“I wanted to fight as soon as I could and Mexico is the next UFC card so I was very happy,” Alvey said. “I would still like to fight one more time this year but it’s getting less and less likely that that’s going to happen but I’m still hoping.”
Alvey who’s become one of the most active fighters was campaigning for a spot on the UFC Manchester card with his teammate and mentor, Dan Henderson. Instead, he failed to find an opponent and had his fight cancelled in Manila. Now he finds himself in Mexico City and is very excited for the opportunity.
“I love fighting overseas, for most of my career before the UFC I didn’t make any money fighting, you make enough to pay rent then you gotta fight again. Before the UFC, I fought in New Zealand, Trinidad, Russia, Albania, and Canada. I fought everywhere before I was in the UFC. I love seeing new places and that was my payment when I wasn’t making any money.”
The Manchester card featured a main event fight between Michael Bisping and Dan Henderson which turned out to be a very competitive war. Bisping walked away with the nod and Henderson failed to add the last remaining belt to his collection. Although disappointed with the result, Alvey feels Henderson went out with a bang.
“I thought it was a great fight, I thought it was a close fight and I gave it to Dan,” Alvey said. “I did think it was a close fight so I’m not outraged that they gave it to Bisping. It’s hard to see because Dan doesn’t have a mark on him and Bisping’s face is swollen shut. When you see such a difference with competitors it’s hard to believe that the guy without a scratch didn’t win.”
In 3 weeks, he is set to take on Alex Nicholson, who’s coming off a first round knockout win over Devin Clark this past July. A stylistically appealing fight for the fans, Alvey will look to do what he does best but is very aware of the threat that Nicholson brings.
“He’s one of the biggest middleweights I will have ever fought, maybe one of the few middleweights that are truly bigger than I am,” Alvey said on Nicholson. “He’s a very rangy fighter, he’s got some spinning back fists that are pretty effective in a lot of his fights and he hits hard. You watch when he hits people, it doesn’t have to be a clean shot and he rattles them so I have to keep my hands up and my chin down and be ready to counter anything that he throws on me.”
A middleweight himself, Alvey has long aspired for a fight versus current champion Michael Bisping. While he knows it’s unlikely now, it remains a goal in his MMA career as he has a lot of respect for the champion.
“A big goal of mine for as long as I can remember is to fight Michael Bisping. Whether he had the title or not I’ve been a huge fan of him, I respect what he’s done in this sport and for years now I’ve wanted to fight him. I’m perfectly aware it probably won’t be for the title but some day I will fight Michael Bisping and it’s always been a fighting goal of mine to compete against someone like him.”
Currently riding a 2 fight win streak, Alvey had previously suffered a minor setback when he lost back to back fights versus Derek Brunson and Elias Theodorou. The Brunson fight was a big opportunity as it was his toughest test to date and a win could have catapulted him to title contention. Not dwelling on the past, his activity will allow him to rebound faster as he is confident he has the ability to compete with the best.
“The middleweight division is stacked. As much as I feel I can beat any of them, I still haven’t beaten any of them yet so I’m going to keep winning, I’m going to keep destroying people, I’m going to make a lot of fans in the process and when the title shot comes I will have earned it and people will want to see it.”
Aiming to fight yet another time before the end of the year, Alvey has drawn comparisons to Cowboy Cerrone due to his willingness to fight anytime and anywhere. Having previously fought 8 times as a professional back in 2010, the comparison makes perfect sense and Alvey is honoured with the association.
“I’ve been fighting a lot lately and people have been comparing me to Cowboy Cerrone. That’s such a cool person to be compared to, that’s the kind of career I want. I want to be the guy that people want to see and I want to be the guy that always says yes.”
With fight cards coming up in Melbourne, Belfast and Brazil next month, Alvey is looking even sooner, willing to even jump in the UFC 205 card one week after his fight as a replacement.
“My wife wants me to fight in Ireland so there are a lot of cards coming up and I’ll be ready for each and every one of them. UFC New York happens one week after my fight and if Tim Boetsch or Natal get injured, I’ll take that fight 1 week after my next fight I’ll be ready.”
MMA’s globetrotter has earned quite the reputation for himself and despite having a tough task at hand in Nicholson, he is already looking forward to jetting around the globe and competing against the division’s best and be rest assured he’ll do it with a massive smile on his face.