Photo by Billie Weiss/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
In case you were still wondering why Conor McGregor gets pretty much anything he wants, look no further than the UFC 246 pay-per-view (PPV) buys on ESPN+, which dethroned the Logan Paul vs. KSI celebrity boxing match to become the most streamed live event in history.
The end result? Roughly one million buys, according to Disney CEO Robert Iger.
While one million sounds like a disaster by “Notorious” standards, especially when compared to the 2.4 million McGregor scored in his fight with Khabib Nurmagomedov, his Donald Cerrone bout was only available with an ESPN+ subscription.
Dave Meltzer has more:
The price for McGregor vs. Cerrone was raised to $64.99 on top of the $4.99 per month to be an ESPN+ subscriber, meaning just under $70 total. McGregor vs. Cerrone would have generated $70 million based on those numbers just in streaming revenue, as well as an $11 million live gate at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. That wouldn’t include revenue from television and streaming pay-per-view outside the U.S., which could hit $20 million.
McGregor claims he’s getting more than half the cut.
McGregor is expected to fight for the lightweight title later this year, but he’ll first have to wait for Khabib Nurmagomedov to defend his 155-pound strap against top contender and longtime nemesis Tony Ferguson.
Their championship headliner takes place at UFC 249 in April.