Disney Earnings Report Shows UFC 246 Did 1 Million Pay Per View Buys

Conor McGregor demonstrates that he is still one of the biggest draws in the UFC.

By Adrian Bishop /

UFC

The Walt Disney Company earnings report yesterday revealed that the UFC 246 bout headlined by Conor McGregor's emphatic victory over Donald Cerrone did around one million pay-per-view buys.

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During the Walt Disney Company's Fiscal First Quarter 2020 Financial Results Conference Call Disney CEO Robert A. Igor announced the news:

"We've been especially happy with a number of partnerships, particularly with the UFC. The recent McGregor Cerrone fight brought in about a million pay-per-view purchases and half a million new subscribers."

This contradicts reports from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that UFC 246 was trending closer to two million PPV buys based on online metrics. However, in March 2019 ESPN signed an exclusive deal with the UFC meaning only subscribers to the ESPN+ streaming service are able to purchase PPV events in the US. As a result, while the number of PPV buys may be down, revenue for the organisation remains the same.

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If the total buys are indeed over one million it will mark the sixth time that Conor McGregor has headlined a PPV card with over a million buys, putting him ahead of fellow UFC megastar Brock Lesnar on five.