Some history has already been made and more could be achieved in New York on Saturday night.
New York City's Madison Square Gardens will host a UFC event for the first time and Conor McGregor could become a two-weight champion should he defeat lightweight Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205.
To preview the fight, Off The Ball were joined by Fergus Ryan and MMA Fighting writer Shaheen Al-Shatti, who opened up by speaking of a mood of sadness in New York in the wake of the outcome of the US election.
But on the fight, they gave their take on McGregor's build-up and the threat Alvarez possesses.
Eddie Alvarez ©INPHO/Tom Hogan
Al-Shatti picked up a few issues that may play into the Dubliner's favour when it comes to Alvarez and his habit of getting dragged into brawls.
"He has been in a lot of wars which is something that Conor has pointed out several times throughout the lead-up of this. He does have a penchant for getting sucked into these brawls. He has so many of these on his resume. Eddie Alvarez has absorbed a lot of damage in his career and you can only do that for so long. It's hard to say whether we're at that point," he said.
Ryan detailed the striking strengths of both fighters.
"There's been a lot made of his wrestling and while he is a good wrestler, he will probably get Conor down. I don't think he's going to keep him down," he said.
"And the diversity of shots Conor has in his locker from kicks to punches, inside, outside... I think Conor might have too much. Eddie's a good striker but unfortunately Conor's one of the best strikers in the world. So Eddie could be bringing a knife to a gun fight."
And he feels Alvarez won't be able to withstand the striking punishment in the same way that Nate Diaz could.
"We've seen a lot in Eddie's fights that he will get tagged. He gets dragged into brawls and he will get tagged. Unfortunately Conor's the type of guy who doesn't just tag you. He can knock you out with one punch," he said.
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