The return of Conor McGregor meant big business for the UFC.
McGregor's return in the UFC 229 main event helped the UFC pull 20,034 fans for a gate of $17.18 million. The gate marks the largest gate in Vegas history for a UFC event and second largest gate in company history behind UFC 205.
The last UFC event to be held at the T-Mobile Arena was UFC 226 headlined by the superfight between Stipe Miocic and Daniel Cormier. That event drew 17,464 fans for a gate of $5.67 million. The last time McGregor compete at the T-Mobile Arena was UFC 202 in the rematch against Nate Diaz. That event drew 15,539 fans for a gate of $7.70 million.
Fight of the Night went to Tony Ferguson and Anthony Pettis for their two round war. The fight was stopped after ten minutes due to Pettis breaking his hand. But in the ten minutes the two did fight, they gave fans a back-and-forth technical brawl and didn't slow down. Ferguson applied relentless pressure in the first round, but was dropped and seemingly out early in the second. However, he showed great survival instincts and an outstanding ability to recover. Once back on his feet, Ferguson continued to pressure his opponent, slicing him up with elbows and a variety of strikes.
One Performance of the Night bonus went to Derrick Lewis, who scored a last second knockout in his bout against Alexander Volkov. Lewis was down two rounds and on his way to likely losing a decision when he turned out Volkov's lights with a right hand and subsequent ground and pound. This marks Lewis' third Performance of the Night bonus and second this year.
The second Performance of the Night bonus went to Aspen Ladd for her first round technical knockout over Tonya Evinger. Ladd got a dominant position early and smashed Evinger on the ground, forcing the referee to jump in and stop things.
Fight of the Night ($50,000 each) - Tony Ferguson and Anthony Pettis
Performance of the Night ($50,000 each) - Derrick Lewis and Aspen Ladd
Attendance - 20,034
Gate - $17.18 million
If you missed any of the action from UFC 229, check out Fightful's full report and tune in to the post-fight podcast for a full review.
