Madison Square Garden Perfect Partner for UFC After 10 Years
This time around in Zuhosky's Take, Drew gives plaudit to Madison Square Garden for being a fabulous steward to the UFC a decade into their partnership:
Madison Square Garden is known as The World's Most Famous Arena. The home court of the NBA champion New York Knicks has welcomed millions of sports fans to the venue to see a variety of memorable moments in its history, including a notable happening five months ago.
On June 14, Madison Square Garden played host to what would prove to be the clinching game of the 2026 NBA Finals. Knicks guard Jalen Brunson totaled 45 points en route to a 94-90 win in Game 5.
New York won the series, four games to one against the San Antonio Spurs, clinching the franchise's first championship since 1973. Besides basketball with the Knicks and hockey with the NHL's New York Rangers, Madison Square Garden has seen its fair share of fights in both The Theatre and the main hall.
UFC Cleared for Takeoff at Madison Square Garden Following New York State Legalizing MMA
At the start of the year in 2016, it was still a question as to whether or not an MMA event would be held in New York, much less at Madison Square Garden, but the state senate passed critical legislation that winter to put New York closer to having cards In March of that year, the New York State Assembly voted on legalizing the sport, with the measure passing, 113-25.
In April, then-Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the bill into law, officially paving the way for MMA shows in the state, effective in September of 2016. With the sport now legal, the UFC set the date for its first event at Madison Square Garden, UFC 205 on Nov. 12, 2016.
That night, Conor McGregor finished Eddie Alvarez inside the second round with punches to capture the UFC Lightweight Championship in the headlining bout. The venue has been an annual stop for the UFC ever since,
Madison Square Garden Visit Goes on Pause in 2020
On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization classified the coronavirus (hereafter referred to as COVID-19) as a global pandemic. The same day, an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and Oklahoma City Thunder was postponed by order of the league upon Rudy Gobert returning a positive test for COVID-19.
Within hours, the NBA suspended its season and sports as a whole went on hiatus for the first time since 9/11. Although the UFC was among the first sports organizations to resume competition, traditional arena shows would not be held until April of 2021, meaning Madison Square Garden wasn't on the 2020 schedule post-restart as the then-UFC Apex held the bulk of the events in the pandemic era.
Despite the gap year caused by the pandemic, the UFC and Madison Square Garden still have a thriving relationship.
UFC and Madison Square Garden a Perfect Match
With combat sports very much a part of Madison Square Garden's history, once MMA was legalized in New York State, The World's Most Famous Arena made the most sense for the promotion to go to. In sports and in life, you hear too often about pairings that don't really work out.
A particular player may not perform as well as the front office of a particular team hopes. By extension, some people do better than others in certain situations.
In the case of the UFC and Madison Square Garden, this pairing has worked out splendidly due to the fights that have been held in the venue on all those November Saturday nights. While Conor McGregor wasn't booked for UFC 334, luminaries like Ciryl Gane, Josh Hokit, Kayla Harrison, and Amanda Nunes were.
You've also got Stephen Thompson making his farewell appearance during UFC 334 against Charles Radtke, and Caio Borralho fighting Yousri Belgaroui. Here's hoping the UFC keeps returning to Madison Square Garden for years to come.
