UFC 205: A look at the UFC’s long road back to New York

Saturday night will be a historic night for the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

UFC 205 features three title fights, a record gate, record attendance and quite possibly a new record pay-per-view buy number. Oh, and there is that guy named Conor McGregor who could become the first fighter in UFC history to simultaneously hold belts in two different weight classes.

But it wasn’t always this easy for the UFC.

That is what makes tonight even more special for those who have been around the sport since the beginning.

On Nov. 12, 1993, UFC 1 took place at the McNichols Sports Arena in Denver, Colorado. The UFC has held one show in New York previously, UFC 7: The Brawl in Buffalo back in 1995, before being banned in the state in 1997. Now, here we are 23 years after the first ever UFC event with the biggest show in company history.

Ahead of UFC 205 on Saturday night, UFC president Dana White and ESPN’s Brett Okamoto took a look back at this wild journey that has led us to Madison Square Garden today.

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UFC 205 prelims kickoff at 7 p.m. ET, before switching over to FOX Sports 1 an hour later. The pay-per-view main card kicks off at 10 p.m. ET.

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UFC 205 live stream: Watch Alvarez vs. McGregor online
UFC 205 live stream: Watch Alvarez vs. McGregor online