10 UFC Events That Changed The Game

Few fighters have burst onto the scene quite like 'The Notorious' Conor McGregor did when he took the UFC by storm in early 2013, yet it was his fight at UFC 189 - two years later - that really proved this Irish ass-kicker wasn't just a flash in the pan.

McGregor was scheduled to finally take on legendary UFC Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo. However, Aldo went down injured in the build-up and Chad Mendes was on hand to step in for the champ.

McGregor overcame Mendes' pressure to claim a second round KO victory, thus earning the title of interim Featherweight champ. This would set-up an all important clash with Aldo further down the line. A star-making performance this may have been, but it wasn't the only piece of stellar action on the card.

Earlier in the night, Robbie Lawler and Rory MacDonald went to absolute war with one another over the former's Welterweight Championship and earned the Fight of the Night award, along with a strong claim to being one of the greatest battles in UFC history. MacDonald would eventually succumb to a vicious fifth round TKO from Lawler, but both men left the Octagon with the respect of all those watching around the world.

The titanic event created a generational star in Conor McGregor - which changed the game itself - and also broke numerous records at that time, including the biggest attendance and gate for an MMA event at Las Vegas' MGM Grand Garden.