Madison Square Garden to host UFC 205 on November 12th

The UFC’s long-awaited Madison Square Garden debut is set for Saturday, November 12th, after New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed a bill into law that will formally legalize MMA in the state.

Last month, the New York State Assembly passed a bill to officially legalize MMA in the state, but it did need Governor Andrew Cuomo’s official signature to finalize it all. With the likes of Ronda Rousey, Chris Weidman, and Lorenzo Fertitta in attendance, Cuomo signed the MMA bill into law at the famed Madison Square Garden in Manhattan.

During the ceremony, Fertitta formally announced that the UFC’s first event in New York since 1995 will take place at MSG on November 12th, on the 23rd anniversary of UFC 1. No fights were announced for UFC 205, but it will surely be a massive pay-per-view card, as the UFC’s decade-long push to legalize MMA in New York has finally come through.

The UFC also plans to hold another event in upstate New York before the end of 2016, but a specific date and venue was not revealed.

#MMA2NY is OFFICIAL!!! pic.twitter.com/qY86hnszy6

— UFC (@ufc) April 14, 2016

As Jim Genia notes, the law will be in effect on September 1st, at which point we the likes of the UFC, Bellator, World Series of Fighting, Ring of Combat, and other promotions will be cleared to stage events in the final state to formally legalize the sport in the USA.

The UFC’s long-awaited Madison Square Garden debut is set for Saturday, November 12th, after New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed a bill into law that will formally legalize MMA in the state.

Last month, the New York State Assembly passed a bill to officially legalize MMA in the state, but it did need Governor Andrew Cuomo’s official signature to finalize it all. With the likes of Ronda Rousey, Chris Weidman, and Lorenzo Fertitta in attendance, Cuomo signed the MMA bill into law at the famed Madison Square Garden in Manhattan.

During the ceremony, Fertitta formally announced that the UFC’s first event in New York since 1995 will take place at MSG on November 12th, on the 23rd anniversary of UFC 1. No fights were announced for UFC 205, but it will surely be a massive pay-per-view card, as the UFC’s decade-long push to legalize MMA in New York has finally come through.

The UFC also plans to hold another event in upstate New York before the end of 2016, but a specific date and venue was not revealed.

As Jim Genia notes, the law will be in effect on September 1st, at which point we the likes of the UFC, Bellator, World Series of Fighting, Ring of Combat, and other promotions will be cleared to stage events in the final state to formally legalize the sport in the USA.