McGregor's UFC 329 return shatters all-time gate record with $25 million in ticket sales

Conor McGregor’s comeback fight against Max Holloway at UFC 329 has generated approximately $25 million in live gate revenue, UFC CEO Dana White confirmed on Friday — breaking the promotion’s all-time record ahead of Saturday’s event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

“The Conor McGregor effect is huge,” White told ESPN. “Our biggest gate ever was the Sphere, $22 million, this gate beat it at $25 million. So this is the biggest gate in UFC history for his return. The city is buzzing.”

White had first announced the record at Thursday’s post-fight press conference without disclosing a figure. McGregor was present at that briefing and thanked fans for their support. Ticket prices for UFC events have reached record highs in 2026, yet demand for Saturday’s card has shown no signs of softening.

The fight marks McGregor’s first octagon appearance since July 2021, when he broke his leg at the end of the first round against Dustin Poirier in the UFC 264 main event — a result that kept him sidelined for years. A planned return at UFC 303 against Michael Chandler was scrapped after McGregor suffered a toe injury, and the Holloway rematch became his next scheduled bout.

McGregor’s absence from competition has done little to diminish his commercial pull. He holds the UFC record for the most-watched pay-per-view event of all time — 2.4 million buys for his fight with Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 229 — and has crossed the 1.5 million buy mark in two separate bouts against Poirier and in his second fight with Nate Diaz.

His drawing power extends beyond MMA. A 2017 crossover boxing match against undefeated Floyd Mayweather Jr., which McGregor lost by tenth-round knockout, reportedly drew 4.3 million domestic pay-per-view buys and earned McGregor a reported $130 million.

McGregor’s return has not been without controversy. During his five-year hiatus he was found liable for sexual assault in a civil suit in 2024 and mounted an unsuccessful presidential campaign in Ireland in 2025. Saturday’s fight against Holloway will be the first test of whether his in-cage performances can still match the scale of his commercial appeal.