UFC 285 gate: Jon Jones headliner secures massive record with a sold-out T-Mobile Arena
UFC 285, headlined by a heavyweight title fight between Jon Jones and Ciryl Gane, certainly lived up to the hype, delivering spectacular finishes as well as heart-wrenching upsets.
The event has reportedly become the fourth highest-grossing event in UFC history in terms of the live gate.
The gate would be #4 all time for UFC event:
UFC 205: $17.7M
UFC 229: $17,188,894.67
UFC 264: $15,759,800
According to a tweet by media producer Jed I. Goodman, the sold-out T-Mobile Arena saw 19,471 fans in attendance and raked in a humongous live gate of $12.15 million.
In comparison, last month's Perth card headlined by the lightweight title fight between Alexander Volkanovski and Islam Makhachev had a much lesser live gate of $5.9 million and was attended by 14,124 fans.
#UFC285 Vegas
Announced Attendance: 19,471 (sold out)
Announced Gate: $12.15M
2023 UFC PPVs:
UFC 284 Perth
Announced Attendance: 14,124
Announced Gate: $5,911,598 (AUD)
UFC 283 Rio de Janeiro
Announced Attendance: 13,604
Gate: N/A
The recently concluded UFC 285 pay-per-view event was stacked with fan-favorite fighters. Even the prelims card had a few big names like Cody Garbrandt and Derek Brunson. In the main event, Jones made a successful heavyweight debut, submitting Gane in the very first round thereby claiming the heavyweight title.
In the co-main event, Valentina Shevchenko's long flyweight title reign came to an end as she was submitted by Alexa Grasso in the fourth round via a face crank With the win, Grasso became the first Mexican-born women's champion in UFC history.
Elsewhere on the main card, surging welterweight contender Shavkat Rakhmonov justified the immense hype around him by soldiering through tough spots to ultimately clinch a submission win over Geoff Neal.
Jon Jones calls out Stipe Miocic after statement win over Ciryl Gane
With Ciryl Gane defeated and the heavyweight belt secured, Jon Jones now wants to solidify his legacy even further, and what better way to do it than taking out the widely considered heavyweight GOAT Stipe Miocic? That's exactly what 'Bones' has in mind.
During the post-fight interview with Joe Rogan, the newly crowned heavyweight champion called out Miocic, warning the 40-year-old that he better be training for the fight:
"You all want to see me beat up Stipe? One thing I know about the UFC is we give the fans what they want to see. Stipe Miocic, I hope you are training my guy. You are the greatest heavyweight of all time and that's what I want. I want you real bad."
Catch Jon Jones' comments below:
Unsurprisingly, Miocic is equally excited about the fight against Jones. During an interview with ESPN MMA's Brett Okamoto, the former heavyweight champion stated that he would definitely triumph over 'Bones' when they meet in the octagon.
Catch Stipe Miocic's comments below:
Although not confirmed, many in the MMA community believe that Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic will take place during international fight week in July.