On April 2, 2008, Alexander fought former WEC Heavyweight Champion James Irvin as the first fight on the televised portion of "" in Broomfield, Colorado. Irvin led off with a superman punch to the jaw that knocked Alexander down. He followed with three more devastating punches to the face that knocked him unconscious and Steve Mazzagatti rushed in to stop the fight. Alexander immediately got to his feet and protested the quick stoppage. The eight-second knockout tied the record for the fastest knockout in the UFC alongside Don Frye's knockout at UFC 8. The loss was officially ruled as a TKO due to strikes, although some sources list it as a KO.