When UFC’s broadcast deal with ESPN expired, the top MMA promotion secured a seven-year, $7.7 billion streaming deal with Paramount. The deal marked the end of the pay-per-view era for UFC. Saturday, UFC 324 marked the promotion’s debut on Paramount+.
Speaking to reporters at UFC 324 presser after the fightWhite did not have the streaming numbers available. Still, White got some promising early indicators.
“I just talked to Ari [Emanuel]Ari said we’ll have numbers Monday or Tuesday,” White said. “This exceeded Paramount’s expectations. We know it killed him, but we don’t know the exact number yet. They say it has doubled.”
UFC 324 was headlined by an interim lightweight title fight. Justin Gaethje and Paddy Pimblett went the distance, and Gaethje captured the gold with a unanimous decision. Gaethje has earned a title unification fight against major titleholder Ilia Topuria, who is currently on hiatus from professional MMA competition.
The show would feature the comeback of Amanda Nunes. “The Lioness” was set to challenge Kayla Harrison for the UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship. Things didn’t go as planned due to Harrison’s neck surgery.
Former UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley and Song Yadong secured the co-headliner spot. O’Malley put himself back in the win column via unanimous decision. The “Suga” show hopes to have a rematch with current UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan.
No. 5 ranked UFC heavyweight Waldo Cortes-Acosta shared the Octagon with fan favorite Derrick Lewis. There was no celebration for ‘The Black Beast’ as he suffered a TKO in the second round. Cortes-Acosta has now extended his winning streak to three.
Did you enjoy the first UFC show under the Paramount+ streaming deal? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.
#Dana #White #UFC #exceeded #Paramounts #expectations #debut