With UFC 286 just within reach, fans couldn’t be more excited to witness one of the most stacked cards of the year so far. Birmingham’s own Leon ‘Rocky’ Edwards will lock horns for the third time with ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ Kamaru Usman. This marks the first numbered event the UK will host since UFC 204.
However, it isn’t just the fight card alone that the fans are psyched about. Every time the promotion has hosted a Pay-per-view or a Fight Night in the UK, fans show up with utmost excitement and cheers for their hometown fighters. Right from the fighter walkouts to the actual KO’s and following celebrations, the Brits never cease to showcase their exuberance.
London’s O2 Arena has been home to the promotion for several events in the past, 10 to be specific. The arena’s energy is one of the most-talked-about things aside from the actual bouts. The likes of Anderson Silva, Fabricio Werdum, Michael Bisping, Jorge Masvidal, Darren Till, and Tom Aspinall, all have performed under the bright lights of the arena.
However, the event that broke the European attendance and gate receipts record happened to be a UFC Fight Night. The main event was headlined by heavyweight big boys Alexander Volkov and Tom Aspinall. The Arena dubbed this event as the highest-grossing sporting event under its roof. The event generated a reported $4.5 million. The Fight Night boasted a sellout crowd of 17,081 for a gate of $4.5M.
UFC 286 gate and attendance
Considering the magnitude that this event carries, UFC 286 might just be the card that breaks the previously built record mentioned above. The promotion has gathered several of the top Europeans from its stable and put together some fan-favorite matchups for the UK scene.
As per tickersmarter.com, Edwards vs. Usman 3 tickets are going for as low as $530.00 and the most expensive seats in the arena are selling for up to $4586.00. The official attendance numbers aren’t out as of today. But, the O2 Arena boasting a 17,000+ capacity for UFC events certainly helps with the gate calculation.
According to another report, the average price to watch UFC 286 in person will be the highest for any sporting event in 2023. It will be behind only Super Bowl LVII at $4,460 per ticket. When asked if this is the biggest fight ever in the UK, president Dana White shared, “Yep, definitely, on every metric. I mean the gate is up to like 9 point something million right now.”
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