November 09, 2016
Julie Jacobson/AP
UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez, left, and featherweight champion Connor McGregor, right, during a news conference for UFC 205, which is scheduled for Saturday night at Madison Square Garden.
On Saturday night, the UFC will make history as MMA's biggest promotion brings a star-studded card to New York City's Madison Square Garden, a venue that has hosted some of the biggest fights in boxing history.
And the main event, which features Philly's Eddie Alvarez defending his lightweight title against current featherweight champ (and master of trash talk) Conor McGregor, is only scratching the surface of a night that will feature three title bouts and more current/former champions than any event in UFC history.
It's going to be a wildly entertaining night for sure.
Here's everything you need to know about UFC 205: Alvarez vs. McGregor, including odds for the entire card and a few ways in which you'll be able to watch the fight -- even if you don't want to pay the $49.99 it'll cost you to order it at home.
But first, a look at how these two champions headlining the historic night match up on paper:
| EDDIE ALVAREZ | vs. | CONOR McGREGOR |
| The Underground King | NICKNAME | The Notorious |
| Lightweight | WEIGHT CLASS | Lightweight |
| 32 | AGE | 28 |
| 1/11/1984 | BIRTHDATE | 7/14/1988 |
| Philadelphia, PA | BIRTHPLACE | Dublin, Ireland |
| Orthodox | STANCE | Southpaw |
| Philadelphia | FIGHTS OUT OF | Dublin |
| 28-4-0 | RECORD | 20-3-0 |
| • Knockout - 16 • Submission - 5 • Decision - 7 | WINS BY | • Knockout - 14 • Submission - 1 • Decision - 5 |
| 69” | HEIGHT | 69” |
| 155 lbs. | WEIGHT | 145lbs |
| 69” | REACH | 74” |
| 40" | LEG REACH | 40" |
| ----------- | STRIKING | ----------- |
| 3.64 | STRIKES/MIN | 6.02 |
| 43.40% | ACCURACY | 48.51% |
| 3.21 | ABSORBED/MIN | 4.93 |
| 59.02% | DEFENSE | 56.24% |
| ----------- | GRAPPLING | ----------- |
| 3.90 | TAKEDOWN AVG | 1.02 |
| 41.07% | ACCURACY | 62.50% |
| 92.31% | DEFENSE | 70.00% |
| • Pro since 2003 • 13 first round finishes • Has won 10 of his last 12 • Has fought in Japan, Canada, Costa Rica, and Russia. |
NOTES | • Pro since 2008 • 12 first round finishes • Has won 16 of his last 17 • Current UFC featherweight champion |
| OPP | EVENT | DATE | W/L/D | BY | TIME |
| Rafael dos Anjos | UFC Fight Night* |
7/07/16 | W | KO/TKO | R1 (3:49) |
| Anthony Pettis | UFC Fight Night |
1/17/16 | W | Decision - Split | R3 (5:00) |
| Gilbert Melendez | UFC 188 |
6/13/15 | W | Decision - Split | R3 (5:00) |
Here's a look at how Alvarez became the lightweight champ back in July with a stunning first-round knockout of Rafael dos Anjos:
| OPP | EVENT | DATE | W/L/D | BY | TIME |
| Nate Diaz | UFC 202* |
8/20/16 | W | Decision - Majority | R5 (05:00) |
| Nate Diaz | UFC 196* |
3/05/16 | L | Submission | R2 (04:12) |
| Jose Aldo | UFC 194* |
12/12/15 | W | KO/TKO | R1 (00:13) |
And here's a look at McGregor's most-recent victory, a majority decision win in his rematch against Nate Diaz:
LIGHTWEIGHT TITLE: Alvarez (+139) vs. McGregor (-159)
• WELTERWEIGHT TITLE: Woodley (+169) vs. Thompson (-194)
• WOMEN'S STRAWWEIGHT TITLE: Jedrzejczyk (-390) vs. Kowalkiewicz (+325)
• MIDDLEWEIGHT BOUT: Weidman (-170) vs. Romero (+145)
• WELTERWEIGHT BOUT: Gastelum (+140) vs. Cerrone (-160)
• WOMEN's BANTAMWEIGHT BOUT: Tate (--) vs. Pennington (+151)
• FEATHERWEIGHT BOUT: Edgar (-330) vs. Stephens (+270)
• LIGHTWEIGHT BOUT: Nurmagomedov (-280) vs. Johnson (+240)
• MIDDLEWEIGHT BOUT: Natal (-150) vs. Boetsch (+130)
• WELTERWEIGHT BOUT: Luque (+125) vs. Muhammad (-145)
• LIGHTWEIGHT BOUT: Miller (+140) vs. Alves (-160)
• WOMEN BANTAMWEIGHT BOUT: Carmouche (+148) vs. Chookagian (-168)
As mentioned above, all six undercard bouts, including some big name fighters like Frankie Edgar, will be available for free on FS1 beginning at 8 p.m.
If you want to watch the main card, you'll have a choice to make. If you wish to watch it at home, it's going to cost you $50 on PPV. That's not bad at all considering the magnitude of this card. You can get more info on how to order the fight, here.
If you're not looking to pay for the fight itself, or if you prefer a more social viewing experience, UFC also has a list of bars around the county that will be showing the fight. Drinks may be a little more expensive than at home, but at least the fight will be free. To see what bars in the Philly area are showing the fight, click here.
Follow Matt on Twitter: @matt_mullin
