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Eddie Alvarez didnt know what hit him.The crowd at Madison Square Garden yelled and cheered as Alvarez absorbed blow after blow with a stunned look on his face. Conor McGregor verbally lashed out as only he can do, and all of a sudden the main event of UFC 205 became a reality -- and Alvarez clearly wasnt ready.Thanks to his unique ability to sell fights with his mouth by going deep inside the head of his opponents, its not out of the question to believe a fight against the UFC featherweight champion McGregor begins at the moment the contract is signed. If you consider Tuesdays wild UFC 205 news conference in New York as a de facto first round of McGregors main event against the lightweight champion Alvarez, it would be difficult to score it as anything other than a clear victory for the Irish superstar.McGregor (20-3) seemed right at home as the centerpiece of the UFCs long-awaited debut in New York City and produced some of his finest work in terms of talking trash toward anyone who got in his way, from Alvarez (28-4), to Nov. 12 undercard fighters Donald Cerrone and Jeremy Stephens.There are those, of course, who will tell that you that prefight talk is just that -- words to market a fight. Just like theres an argument to be made that Alvarez, a street-tough veteran of 32 fights in promotions all over the globe (and the epitome of a Philadelphia fighter), has been around enough fight banter before to be affected.But Alvarez, 32, who upset Rafael dos Anjos in July to win the title, certainly lacks experience in a setting exactly like the one he found himself on Tuesday -- on a main event stage this large against an opponent this skilled in the art of mental warfare.In that regard, Alvarez looked largely unprepared to deal with the psychological storm that comes with standing across from McGregor, whose history of getting inside the mind of opponents is hard to overlook, dating back to his UFC debut in 2013. From wearing down Jose Aldo to outright breaking Dustin Poirier and forcing him to fight off emotions, McGregor, 28, is a proven master of manipulation through equal methods of intimidation and infuriation.An outright comparison to a young Muhammad Ali in this case wouldnt be hyperbole as McGregors colorful public act isnt just a show designed to drive up his bottom line through entertainment. Its a calculated target for the emotional weak spot of his opponents.Alvarez might not be subject to fear of McGregors power or reckless confidence or even his uncanny ability for precise predictions through his alter ego Mystic Mac, but its worthy of consideration whether Alvarez, the champion of the larger weight class between the two, is vulnerable to something different altogether -- overconfidence -- with McGregors clown prince routine acting as fuel.On July 7, at the postfight news conference after his title victory, Alvarez talked about the number of lightweight elites he has beaten in the UFC, from Gilbert Melendez to Anthony Pettis and dos Anjos, before mentioning his preferred choice for his first title defense.I would ask Dana White, please to give me an easier fight like Conor McGregor, Alvarez said. I deserve that. I have been fighting the best guys, so I would like a gimme fight.Alvarez was just as confident on Tuesday.This guy has eight minutes of fight in him. Thats it, Alvarez said. He quits after eight minutes each fight. Hes not a championship fighter. He has never been. And he has never, ever fought anyone in UFC like me, ever.The basis for Alvarezs stance, outside of natural confidence in himself, is that McGregors run to stardom has been largely hand-picked, which he explained at length in July during a UFC 201 Q&A session.McGregor fans are a bit swayed, you guys are a bit biased, Alvarez said. Youre not seeing what I see as a fighter. What Im seeing is not the right style matchups. Hes fighting the perfect style matchups for himself. Hes not fighting the guys who will threaten the way I can.When you mix his wrestling ability with McGregors vulnerability on the ground, theres some credence to Alvarezs words. However, as McGregor argued on Tuesday, theres just as easily a case to be made for the opposite, with Alvarezs weakness meshing perfectly with McGregors greatest strength.Like I said, hes chinny. He has a chin, McGregor said. He gets cracked, he gets dropped, and it has happened throughout his career. Hes a weathered fighter. Hes on his way out and hes very, very lucky to be in the position that he is in. One round is all it will take me to knock him out.Either way, Alvarez failed to come away from their first public appearance looking victorious -- a notion that was hammered home by the final question of the news conference, as a fan disguised as a media member badly trolled the lightweight champion before berating him with expletives.Instead of firing a witty or explosive comeback, Alvarez seemed confused, repeatedly asking, Whats your question? as McGregor joined the crowd in celebrating with delight.His question is why are you talking s---? Thats his question, McGregor interrupted. Why the f--- you up here talking s---? Say it like it is, youre blessed. Youre blessed that I chose you. Youre blessed that I chose to whoop your ass next. Say it like it f---ing is.Its true that Alvarez wouldve never had a prayer by attempting to out-Conor his opponent in a verbal joust of one-liners, but he failed to compete on Tuesday just the same, choosing to laugh off or ignore insults at one turn, only to be overwhelmed at the next.Meanwhile, McGregor had his way with conducting the cheers from an adoring and rowdy crowd. Its quite possible that none of this will matter once the two fighters square off at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 12, what is being billed as the biggest card in the companys 23-year history, but McGregor will do his best to take advantage of every situation, with Tuesday just a simple demonstration of that fact.McGregor appeared the more comfortable, brash and calculated of the two on Tuesday, ready to step inside the Octagon at the worlds most famous arena confident in his history of subliminally cracking the armor of his opponent long before the fight has officially begun. 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