​Conor McGregor is coming back. The UFC superstar returns on Saturday night at UFC 329 to take on Max Holloway in his first bout in more than five years. McGregor last competed at UFC 264, where he sustained a broken left shinbone and fibula. The long-awaited return of the former champion sets the stage for a massive weekend in the sport.
UFC president Dana White says UFC 329 could generate the biggest gate in UFC history, projected at $25 million, surpassing UFC 306, which grossed about $21.8 million at the Las Vegas Sphere. On the secondary market, ticket prices remain steep. As of Friday morning, the cheapest ticket listed on SeatGeek was $902, while TickPick showed an average ticket price around $1,537 for the event.
UFC 329 might also set a viewership record. Freedom 250 drew 17 million viewers in the United States and Latin America, averaging 8.2 million across those markets on Paramount+, with a global audience of 34 million. While Freedom 250 captured broader attention than McGregor’s return, the Irishman’s star power should not be underestimated. McGregor has headlined eight of the top ten biggest UFC pay-per-view events in history, with his most recent bout against Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 drawing 1.5 million buys.
Despite the high-profile pull, CBS will not simulcast the event, as it has done for other UFC events since signing a $7.7 billion partnership earlier this year. Instead, CBS will air NCIS: Sydney and 48 Hours. The network will also air a one-hour Friday-night special at 9:00 p.m. ET featuring live coverage of the ceremonial weigh-ins and an interview with McGregor.
Still, everything points toward Saturday delivering a massive number for Paramount+, potentially rivaling Freedom 250. The live stream for Thursday’s press conference on YouTube peaked at roughly 233,000 viewers, higher than the viewership for the UFC 328 press conference (210,000) and Freedom 250 (180,000). The presser drew a large crowd at Las Vegas’s T-Mobile Arena as well, with more than 7,000 in attendance, per a UFC spokesperson.
Both main-event fighters are poised to cash in historic paydays. McGregor, who has two fights left on his deal, has previously claimed his contract was voided after UFC shifted away from a pay-per-view model under its new Paramount arrangement. He ultimately reached a deal with the promotion that keeps him as the sport’s highest-paid star. “It’s multiples over anybody in the UFC, including Zuffa Boxing,” McGregor’s agent Audie Attar told The Ariel Helwani Show. “It’s a historic number. UFC certainly moved further than they ever have, and probably wanted to.” Holloway, the former UFC featherweight champion, said Saturday night will mark the biggest payday of his career. Other fighters like Poirier have talked about the record-breaking payouts they’ve received for fighting McGregor, with the Irishman cheekily noting their value in terms of SEO.
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