UFC 189 set a record for attendance and gate at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The event drew 16,019 for a gate of $7.2 million. In addition, Conor McGregor, Thomas Almeida, Robbie Lawler and Rory MacDonald earned the performance bonuses.
The numbers were announced post-fight by Dana White during its press conference.
The attendance and gate figures are the second-highest in UFC history as April 2011’s UFC 129 in Toronto drew a $12 million gate with over 55,000 in attendance.
UFC 189 broke the MMA gate record in Nevada previously held by Silva-Sonnen II at UFC 148 which drew $6,901,655 with a paid attendance of 13,600. Notably, attendance for the event was first reported at 15,016. Previously, the highest paid attendance for an event was UFC 168 in December 2013 with 14,574 paying to see the double main event of Weidman-Silva and Rousey-Tate.
The bonuses were given to McGregor and Almeida for their performances on the PPV. Fight of the Night was clearly Lawler-MacDonald for their battle which resulted in a successful title defense for Lawler. Each received $50,000.
Payout Perspective:
The UFC delivered with its biggest event of the year. The PPV came through and included the Matt Brown-Tim Means replay from the Prelims to fill the last half of the PPV block. The attendance and gate had to be largely due to the heavy Irish contingent cheering on McGregor. We will wait and see how the PPV buy rate did in the coming days.
Great event overall. This should translate well for the rest of 2015.
Terrific event last night!
The uniforms looked like crap but the graphics and main event walkouts were really cool.
All the nation card fights were fun to watch…
This is the biggest event in company history. If it didn’t get to 2mm PPVs it got close.
It also sets up Aldo v McGregor again which will break all the same records as this.
Funny how the UFC cant sell tickets anywhere anymore, has shitty gates with far bigger stars, and they want us to believe that this show did these numbers? bahahahhahahahahahahahhaa Suck another dick please Dana!
SAL = hater
salda, talking out of his ass yet again.
I think d is looking good for his bet.
Sal is a retard. The place was packed in attendance last night. Those Irish fans were all over the place and McGregor is the biggest star in mma right now. He knows how to draw a crowd.
In the post fight, Dana White stated that this card is trending well over 1M Buys and 1M buys is the base.
Hahaha mma media getting paid again…nobody in media even pointed out that it was a 2 week notice fight for mendes….instead it was even mcgregor who overcame the last minute change of the opponent….at least a lot of fighters are pointing out the fact that what if he had a full camp….ufc spent the biggest to promote this card they couod have moved it a couple of weeks but they just really want mcgregor to win…dw is dictating again pathetic hahahaha
Hahaha. Tops is self destructing after realizing McGregor is here to stay.
What if Mendes had a full camp? He was getting hit early in that fight consistently and when he got takedowns other than that 1 elbow, he didn’t do much other than control. Mendes is an elite fighter and I guarantee you he was in shape or he wouldn’t have taken the fight. Was he in peak shape? No. But he is well known for not having a great gas tank.
McGregor proved he is a high level fighter. His striking is better than anyone in the division. The Aldo matchup is an even better fight stylistically for him and I see him taking it. The guy has an iron chin and a ton of power. I don’t see anyone beating Edgar though.
haha you morons can believe what you want! its a hype game to look relevant because of maypac’s insane numbers!
Saldaretard.
2million?
What the hell is wrong with u.
This fight probably did 335k.
Theyll lie and say 500k
You are a retarded moron and redefine the word idiot. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if this hit 1m buys. There is no way it only did 500k and 335k is something only a retarded mental patient like you would claim.
the only thing consistent with the ufc over the years is all of their lies. Nothing good has ever lasted with them! In 2 years we won’t even be talking about this conor guy bahahahha And the MGM gets more rent money from the ufc then boxing haha
From D” i guarantee you he was in shape”…..hahahahaha….
Hey Jason, How is it trending? What do you estimate it will do?
Unfortunately I didn’t get a chance to catch the PPV, had to step out of the MMA bubble for a few days and to be honest I haven’t heard much about the event. How do you think the PPV is looking on this one?
This was a great event. Every fight on the PPV was great. And the two title fights were just epic matches, with all the contestants showing incredible heart and courage. And McGregor/Mendes….the energy going on during that fight. Great match, with standing versus ground gaming going on. Both guys working to their strengths, with McGregor pulling it out. Props to Mendes for bringing a hell of a fight on a short notice. But again,….wow. I watched it at a bar and the place was standing the entire time. I haven’t seen this type of response from a crowd since Brock. The place was crazy loud.
Right now, i don’t give give a shit about receipts or PPV. Why even discuss that now? Who cares? What should be talked about was just how fun this event was to watch. This was MMA at it’s finest. And for that matter, this was SPORTS at it’s finest. This event was hyped up beyond belief and it delivered. All the fights delivered.
You people on this thread, coming onto it and whining about stuff? Seriously? It’s pathetic. Go get a life.
Topps, you are a retard, fighters like Mendes are typically in shape 365 days out of the year. He wasn’t in peak condition, but still in shape. It’s not like he was eating pizza and cheeseburgers when he got the call, you moron.
Sal’s head is going to explode when McGregor fights Aldo and it destroys anything boxing puts out there.
Whats D’s prediction on Aldo-McGregor?
No predictions, just analysis today- your case worker allowed you to use the mental wing’s computer far too long this morning.