A fight that will live long in the memory took place at UFC 202 last evening when Conor McGregor got his revenge on Nate Diaz after edging a decision after a five round thriller.

The epic build-up during fight week suggested it was going to be a fiery affair and the atmosphere was nothing short of electric as both fighters made their way to the Octagon in front of a packed out T-Mobile Arena and millions watching around the world.

At shortly past quarter to nine local time, McGregor walked to the Octagon, draped in the Irish Tricolour and looking his usual confident self as the entire crowd stood on their feet. Shortly after, Diaz made his way into the arena to noticeably more boos.

After receiving their final instructions from referee John McCarthy, the fight began and all pleasantries were spared as both fighters refused to touch gloves.

In round one McGregor began at a much slower pace compared to their first fight in March. The Irishman opened with a leg kick but Diaz fired back with his own as they both looked to gauge the distance. After a minute and a half, McGregor landed a big straight left that dropped Diaz, the American recovered right away though and got straight back to his feet.

Diaz fired back with jabs but was landing short of his mark. McGregor had success with a few more short lefts as Diaz seemingly began to get frustrated and trash talked the Irishman as the round closed.

Round two began with Diaz coming out his corner taunting McGregor. The Irishman dropped Diaz again with another straight left and let Diaz get back to his feet. McGregor then dropped him for a third time but again Diaz rose to his feet and fired back shots himself showing incredible durability.

McGregor then slowed his pace for a minute as the American pushed forward and caught McGregor with a good shot to wobble his legs. Diaz then poured on the pressure, pushing McGregor up against the cage and firing in stiff left hands.

The third round began with Diaz pressing forward and landing a big right hand. The two then clinched against the cage as the crowd roared "Diaz, Diaz, Diaz." The bigger American then started to use his size in the clinch, but McGregor broke away and landed a good left hand and then another when pressed up against the cage.

After a period of more heavy clinch work, McGregor tried to catch his breath but Diaz poured on the pressure showing no let-up as he again pushed him up against the cage and unleashed a barrage of strikes as the round closed.

Diaz continued to taunt the Irishman before round four could begin and raised his arms high above his head in his signature pose. McGregor was looking desperately tired at this point but he carried on bravely swinging away.

Diaz was now loading up on his shots and was bleeding badly from his right eye. McGregor was having success with some short elbows but again Diaz used his size to press him against the cage.

Both then landed vicious elbows before Diaz landed a big right hand as the crowd went berserk and the Irishman held on. McGregor then out of nowhere landed two huge lefts but Diaz ate them well.

The final round began with the crowd on their feet and both fighters with their hands in the air. McGregor again was on the back foot but had success with counter strikes as Diaz closed the distance. The American had big cuts on his face that seemed to be hampering his vision but he continued to press forward. Diaz looked to take McGregor down but the Irishman resisted it well and moved back to the centre of the Octagon as Diaz gave him the middle finger.

With two minutes to go, Diaz was still the one pushing the pace. He again looked for the takedown but McGregor resisted it once again. It was purely a battle of attrition with one minute to go as both men, exhausted pressed each other up against the side of the Octagon. With ten seconds to go Diaz finally got his man down to the mat but before he could do anything time ran out.

After twenty-five minutes of the most scintillating fight action of the year, the fight was over and the rest lay with the judges at ringside. Both men celebrated and finally embraced as they awaited the decision.

With the crowd on their feet, the ringside announcer Bruce Buffer announced that the winner by majority decision was 'The Notorious' Conor McGregor.

Elsewhere ...

In the co-main event, Anthony Johnson smashed through Glover Teixeira in just twelve seconds after landing a massive uppercut in one of the first exchanges of the fight. Johnson's impressive win will likely mean he is next man to face UFC light heavyweight champion, Daniel Cormier.

Earlier in the evening, Donald 'Cowboy' Cerrone took on Rick Story in a fight that saw two very different fighting styles employed with Cerrone's standing Muay Thai taking on Story's wrestling based attack.

After a tight first round, it was Cerrone's standup that did the business as he caught Story with an insane four strike combination that included a left hook, right hook, body shot and finally a head kick. Unsurprisingly, Story slumped to the mat and the referee Herb Dean waved it off to give Cerrone his third straight win at welterweight.

UFC 202 Main Card Results

Conor McGregor def. Nate Diaz (Majority Decision 48-47, 47-47, 48-47)

Anthony Johnson def. Glover Teixeira by TKO (punches) (R1, 0:12)

Donald Cerrone def. Rick Story by TKO (R2, 2:02)

Mike Perry def. Gyun Gyu Lim by TKO (R1, 3:38 )

Tim Means def. Sabah Homasi by TKO (punches) (R2, 2:56)

UFC 202 Preliminary Bouts

Cody Garbrandt def. Takeya Mizugaki by KO (R1, 0:48)

Raquel Pennington def. Elizabeth Phillips by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Artem Lobov def. Chris Avila by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Cortney Casey def. Randa Markos by Verbal Submission (Armbar) (R1, 4:34)

UFC 202 Fight Pass Prelims

Lorenz Larkin def. Neil Magny by TKO (R1, 4:08)

Colby Covington def. Max Griffin by TKO (R3, 2:18)


Marvin Vettori def. Alberto Uda by Submission (Guillotine) (R1, 4;30)