Former UFC and Bellator champion Eddie Alvarez is in the semifinals of One Championship’s lightweight grand prix despite losing in the opening round.
The American was knocked out by Timofey Nastyukhin in the first round of the bracket on March 31, but Nastyukhin has suffered an injury and has been forced to pull out of the tournament. As a result, Alvarez’s bout vs. former lightweight king Eduard Folayang has become a semi-final matchup, the Singapore-based promotion announced on Monday.
Alvarez vs. Folayang was not expected to be part of the tournament.