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Stronger, smarter Alvarez to bounce back
Shane Alvarez, right, lost his match against Darren Uyenoyama but gained confidence and experience in his young MMA career. (PXC Photo)
“This [loss] only drives me to aim and reach much higher. I will be back 10 times stronger, 10 times smarter and 10 times better,” Alvarez posted on Facebook.
The 21-year-old Trench Tech fighter suffered a first round loss to Uyenoyama via referee stoppage contest with less than 30 seconds left in their non-title fight in the 125-pound division.
Alvarez, according to his father Cuki, started aggressively from the opening bell as he delivered a number of leg kicks, forcing Uyenoyama to keep a safe distance.
Uyenoyama just let Alvarez do his thing and waited patiently before making his move to exploit his weaknesses.
And when the 35-year-old saw an opening, he grabbed Alvarez who was attempting for a body kick for the take down. On several occasions, Alvarez managed to get out of Uyenoyama’s hold but the world-class fighter worked his way for a full mount then began his barrage of punches from all angles, forcing referee Tony D’Angelo to stop the fight.
“Shane needed to taste a world class level of a fighter like Darren. He remained in good spirits despite the loss and is excited to get back to training,” said the older Alvarez. “It’s back to the [gym] for us to sharpen our swords.”
Cuki added his son need to improve on his take down defense and wrestling skills, and at the same time enhance further his grappling and jiu jitsu.
Shane, on a Facebook post, apologized for the loss but also thanked his fans for their support. “It was a good fight but I could have done better. Everyone is still proud of me. I’m so happy and honored to have such loving fans like you all.”
“I learned so much in just one round so it is still a win-win situation for me. But a loss is a loss. Darren is the real deal and he is a world class and tough fighter. It would have been a different story if I just hung in there in the first round,” he added.
“I will make sure that next time around I get the win no matter whom I face. This is only the beginning, we are only going up from here and that’s a promise,” Shane said.
Shane, who also thanked his sponsors Isla Energy, Trench Tech, FISG, Kulan-Zamu, dropped to 11-2 with three wins by way of knockout, three by submission and four by decision. Uyenoyama improved to 9-5 with one victory via KO, four by submission and three by decision. (Jon Perez)
