After a brief hiatus, Conor McGregor's devastating left-hand is back. The missile that floored Jose Aldo in 13 seconds was less effective against the bigger man in Nate Diaz, but it utterly dismantled Eddie Alvarez in Madison Square Garden. Alvarez was dropped three times in the opening couple of minutes of the first round, and eventually, the inevitable came to pass in the second. The fight was stopped after 3 minutes and 4 seconds in the second, and means that McGregor is a history-maker: the first man to hold two belts at separate weight divisions.
McGregor said afterwards that "Eddie is a warrior, but he shouldn't be in here with me"; a fair summary based on the incredibly one-sided eight minutes of action we saw in New York.
Here's the reaction among the MMA world, as McGregor cashed the cheques his mouth writes.
Conor McGregor is the first fighter in UFC history to be a champion in 2 different weight classes at the same time. 145 & 155.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) November 13, 2016
McGregor seems upset that they don't have 2 belts for him. He wants that shot that has been his Twitter profile for 2 years.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) November 13, 2016
Four punch combination, Alvarez is down, Conor lands a few shots and McCarthy stops it Conor McGregor is now the lightweight champion
— Kevin Iole (@KevinI) November 13, 2016
He said he would do it and it was done! Super proud of @TheNotoriousMMA two weight world champ! 😊 Splendid! #SBG #UFC #historymaker #D12
— Aisling Daly (@aisydaly) November 13, 2016
He made that look easy. That's what stands out.
— Chuck Mindenhall (@ChuckMindenhall) November 13, 2016
Have no doubt about it, Eddie Alvarez is a great fighter. Conor McGregor made beating him look easy.
— Seán Sheehan (@SeanSheehanBA) November 13, 2016
Conor McGregor is the seventh fighter in UFC history to earn victories in three different weight classes. #UFC205
— Mike Bohn (@MikeBohn) November 13, 2016
