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Conor McGregor and his love affair with historic venues is known far and wide. He main evented the first pay-per-view that UFC held at the historic Madison Square Garden in NYC, and making the moment even more iconic, became the first-ever two-division champion in the history of UFC.
The MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas is among the most prestigious arenas in the country, and even though UFC has been holding events there for a long time, Conor McGregor somehow managed to leave an irrefutable mark within the walls of greatness.
Conor Mcgregor and his MGM history
Conor McGregor fought Dustin Poirier in his first pay-per-view appearance at the MGM Grand on September 27, 2014 at UFC 178, and walked out of there with a first-round knockout victory just like he had predicted.
As the two fighters, as well as the rest of the MMA community, get ready for the rematch, UFC referee Marc Goddard reminisced with Full Reptile on Conor McGregor's MGM history and how it was like to be present there in person.
Marc Goddard went down memory lane to talk about the time Conor McGregor fought Chad Mendes at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. His 5-0 undefeated UFC record so far, including a first-round TKO over Dustin Poirier, and his undeniable charisma had already bought Conor McGregor one of the biggest fan-followings in the company.
Marc Goddard remembers the MGM Grand being overrun by fans - packed like a football stadium - the day Conor McGregor fought and defeated Chad Mendes at UFC 189 to become the Interim Featherweight Champion.
"It was eleven or twelve thousand trying to turn up to the weigh-in. If you weren't here, you wouldn't know... The police and fire departments, they didn't know what to do. They literally did not know what to do. It was a f***ing shutdown."
But the fans were all well-behaved and having fun together, Goddard pointed out - "It was like a carnival."
Jose Aldo was originally scheduled to be Conor's opponent for UFC 183, but he had to pull out owing to an injury. Chad Mendes replaced him making it an Interim Featherweight title fight, and the event went on to break UFC gate revenue records at that time.
"Honestly I can't describe what it was like."
"When you walk through the walls downstairs, you get goosebumps. When you walk into the arena, you get goosebumps of the people that have fought and the fights that have taken place... every boxer of note. And then of course in the later years when the UFC comes and the amount of their unbelievable historic pay-per-views that happened in that arena. You just feel it when you walk down... We'll be in there before anything happens. So there's no fans, it's quiet, it's eerie. It's mad."
The MGM Grand has hosted some of the most legendary boxing matches of the last few decades, including the biggest PPV event of all time in Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao.
Marc Goddard and John Kavanagh shared a moment
Marc Goddard shared a memory that he shared with Conor McGregor's coach John Kavanagh after 'The Notorious' had won the biggest fight of his career so far.
"I'm going this way, he's going that way, and it's just like we stopped - 'It's f***ing mad isn't it?' He stood there. Conor had just won the biggest fight of his life. And he's walking around in the quiet eating a banana. We bump into each other who have come up all the way and watched everything and we just stood there on these stairs like 'What the f*** are we doing?' And then he went his way and I went my way. Hours ago there were the record attendances and then that was me and him in this blacktop corridor just trying to find our way... It's mad, crazy."
Goddard was there at UFC 194 as well when Conor McGregor went on to clinch an even bigger win by beating Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo to win his first UFC title. John McCarthy was the referee for the title fight, but Goddard was there watching.
"I was f***ing ten foot away from it, with the jaws dropping on the floor like everyone else... that was just like hysteria level 101. Aldo was the consensus greatest Featherweight of all time and Conor knocked him out in what, 14 seconds?"
Goddard remembered the moment when Chad Mendes went up to a heartbroken Aldo and embraced and hugged him.
Goddard had officiated their previous fight in Brazil, which Chad Mendes won via decision. But there was an "unwritten respect" between the two icons, and it was right there for everyone to see, said Goddard.
Conor McGregor will face Dustin Poirier again on January 23 at UFC 257. This time, unfortunately, there will probably be no fans in attendance and they will have to share in the hype of a Conor McGregor fight from their homes only.
