UFC 205 results, highlights: McGregor makes history with TKO of Alvarez

Need a devastating way to wrap up a paradigm-shifting week?

Call Conor McGregor.

The fiery octagonal supernova spearheaded the UFC's historic charge into midtown Manhattan with tossed chairs and tough talk, then delivered on everything he'd promised with a clinical second-round stoppage of Eddie Alvarez that made him the promotion's first simultaneous two-belt champion.

"That's one unique human being, both in his accomplishments and his ability," UFC analyst Joe Rogan said. "He was essentially flawless tonight. He teed off on Eddie Alvarez, countered beautifully, closed the show and made history."

Indeed, the crowning moment came after 8 minutes, four seconds of one-sided combat, during which McGregor dropped the Philadelphia-based lightweight champion -- making his first defense of a 155-pound title he'd won in July -- four times.

The finale came thanks to a four-punch volley that dumped Alvarez to his back and prompted the intervention of referee John McCarthy, who pushed McGregor away before he could do more damage.

"Not one bit," McGregor sneered, when Rogan asked if he was surprised by the suddenness of the win. "They're not on my level. They've got to have something. Eddie's a warrior but he shouldn't have been in here with me."

The chat with Rogan came after a brief interlude in which McGregor stomped around the mat demanding the delivery of his second title belt and chastising the promotion for not having it ready at the moment of his victory.

He then swerved the full house at Madison Square Garden by initially seeming contrite for his brash behavior, saying "I want to take this opportunity to apologize," before continuing "to absolutely nobody. I'm the two-division champ. I do what the f--- I want."

McGregor won his featherweight title with a lightning-quick erasure of Jose Aldo last December, and was in line for a chance to add another against Rafael dos Anjos in March before the then-lightweight kingpin pulled out with an injury. Substitute Nate Diaz stepped in for a non-title bout at 170 pounds and shocked McGregor with a second-round stoppage, prompting a rematch that McGregor won by narrow five-round decision in August.

Alvarez beat dos Anjos in July to become the second-belt target, but the former high school wrestling star at Philly's North Catholic was never competitive once the bell rang. He was dropped with a left hand about a minute into the first round, was dumped again only moments later and went down for the third time about halfway through the five-minute session.

McGregor briefly taunted his foe by standing in front of him with his hands clasped behind his back, but Alvarez was unable to capitalize. He was never fully able to regain his legs and was unsuccessful in fleeting attempts to get McGregor to the mat and turn it into a wrestling competition.

Instead, shortly after the stoppage and upon finally receiving his second belt, the Irishman climbed the fence with one thrown across each shoulder and allowed fans to reach out and touch the baubles on his return walk to the locker room.

UFC boss Dana White had sent mixed messages before Saturday about whether McGregor would be able to hold and defend both titles going forward, saying at times that he'd have to relinquish one while also indicating that if any fighter would have the stuff to prolong two title reigns, it'd be him.

As McGregor exited following his Garden party, though, he seemed far more concerned about getting on with the afterglow.

"Look at that up there," he said, motioning toward the arena's big screen. "That looks pretty good."

History #UFC205 pic.twitter.com/T0W7rD0ZI3
— #UFC205 (@ufc) November 13, 2016

Confusion reigned after a classic welterweight bout between champion Tyron Woodley and No. 2 contender Stephen Thompson, which was initially announced as a decision win for the titleholder before it was corrected to a majority draw that still enabled him to retain his belt.

Two judges scored it 47-47, while a third gave it to Woodley, 48-47.

Announcer Bruce Buffer started to read the scores, left the cage and returned and called Woodley the winner. Then, as Woodley was being interviewed by UFC analyst Joe Rogan, the chat was interrupted to allow Buffer to adjust the verdict to the third draw in the promotion's championship history.

CBS Sports agreed with the narrow Woodley win, also scoring it 48-47.

Woodley controlled the first round with superior striking over his karate master opponent, but was unable to land significant shots in rounds two and three against Thompson's confusing style.

He regained the edge in the fourth and dropped Thompson with right hands, but was unsuccessful in gaining a submission after going to a guillotine choke hold. Instead, a bloodied Thompson was able to wriggle his head out and finish the round landing shots of his own.

Thompson then won a largely non-violent fifth, but didn't seem too irked by the scoring.

Woodley is 16-3-1, while Thompson went to 13-1-1.

"This guy is a monster, he's very strong in the clinches and he kept me guessing the whole time," Thompson said. "I thought I outpointed him in the last round. It is what it is, we will do it again."

Unbeaten strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk successfully risked her belt for the fourth time, defeating fellow Polish export and No. 2 contender Karolina Kowalkiewicz by unanimous decision.

The win, which moved Jedrzejczyk to 13-0 as a pro, came by three official scores of 49-46.

She, in fact, is the only unbeaten champion on the UFC roster.

CBS Sports concurred with the judges and saw Jedrzejczyk a 49-46 winner.

Kowalkiewicz, who'd lost by submission when the two met as amateurs in 2012, is now 10-1.

Jedrzejczyk controlled a huge majority of the action thanks to superior speed and technique with both her hands and feet, frequently peppering Kowalkiewicz as she came forward.

The challenger's lone moment of real success came about 90 seconds into the fourth round when she landed a right to the champion's nose and sent her reeling into the fence.

"I wasn't hurt very badly, but you never expect the knockdown," Jedrzejczyk said. "Polish girls are the toughest in the world."

Jedrzejczyk was able to elude further damage and continued battering her foe with both punches and kicks across the fifth round in spite of an apparent nose injury and noticeable swelling alongside her right eye.

"She's the best in the world. It was a very hard fight," Kowalkiewicz said. "I'm very proud because I gave a good fight."

Former Olympic wrestling medalist Yoel Romero put a sudden end to ex-middleweight champ Chris Weidman's New York homecoming, knocking him senseless with a flying knee that led to the end of their bout just 24 seconds into the final round of a scheduled three-rounder.

"I trained very hard," Romero said. "It doesn't matter whatever's happened in my life. I'm here now."

The two men had split the first two rounds with successful, but not dominant, mat work.

But Romero quickly sprang into action in the third, connecting solidly with the knee to Weidman's forehead and connecting again to the back of the Long Islander's head as he crumbled to the mat.

A few quick hand strikes prompted the intervention of referee Mario Yamasaki, and a bloodied Weidman stayed on the mat for several moments before rising to congratulate his foe.

Romero hasn't lost since 2011.

Weidman was the middleweight champion heading into UFC 194 before losing to Luke Rockhold. He entered Saturday's fight as the No. 2 middleweight contender to Romero's No. 4.

Reigning middleweight king Michael Bisping -- who dethroned Rockhold -- was in the arena and reacted to Romero's victory by flipping off his imminent opponent.

"You see what a real champion looks like," Romero said. "I'll see you soon, Mike."

Rising bantamweight Raquel Pennington scored the most important win of her career with a pay-per-view opening unanimous decision over top-ranked contender and former champion Miesha Tate.

Pennington, a former training partner of Tate's, earned the nod by scores of 29-28, 30-27 and 30-27.

CBS Sports agreed with the 29-28 score for Pennington.

She was able to batter Tate with punches as the veteran attempted to get the fight to close quarters, then managed to compete evenly on the mat.

"To go against Miesha, I must be doing something right," Pennington said. "They're your idols and then they become your rivals. That's what happens."

Tate, who fell to 18-7 in her pro career, announced her retirement after the fight.

"I'll love this sport forever," she said. "But it's not my time anymore."

Tate shocked then-champ Holly Holm to win the bantamweight title on the undercard of McGregor's loss to Nate Diaz last March, but dropped the belt to Amanda Nunes four months later.

The win moves Pennington up in line for a shot at the winner of Nunes' imminent match with Ronda Rousey atop UFC 207. Tate lost to Rousey in both 2012 and 2013.

Pennington lost a split decision to Holm in 2015.

"I have a full toolbox," she said, "full of tools the world has yet to see."

Winners in the preliminary portion of the card, which aired on FS1, included Vicente Luque, Tim Boetsch, Khabib Nurmagomedov and former UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar.

Nurmagomedov, an unbeaten 28-year-old Russian lightweight, surely earned himself some post-fight social media buzz by calling out McGregor - whom he labeled a "chicken."

UFC 205 results
Winner	Loser	Decision
Conor McGregor	Eddie Alvarez	Second-round TKO
Tyron Woodley	Stephen Thompson	Majority draw
Joanna Jedrzejczyk	Karolina Kowalkiewicz	Unanimous decision
Yoel Romero	Chris Weidman	Third-round KO (Flying knee)
Raquel Pennington	Miesha Tate	Unanimous decision