UFC 306 will mark the very first time the UFC will set foot at The Sphere, one of the most interactive venues in Las Vegas. Scheduled for the Mexican Independence Day, Noche UFC Sphere is set to celebrate the history of Mexican independence with the fights. Well, that’s what Dana White has repeatedly claimed, even though the main event is all set to feature Merab Dvalishvili trying to snatch the bantamweight championship title from Sean O’Malley. Needless to say, the event also pulled a massive amount of money from the UFC head honcho.
Back in June 2024, the UFC CEO confirmed that he was already $17 million down with the preparations for Noche UFC Sphere. And now, with just a few weeks left for the big event, White has revealed how expensive the show has become. No wonder, he seemed frustrated with the test runs.
Dana White reveals the expensive nature of Noche UFC Sphere
During the press conference for Dana White’s Contender Series Season 8, a reporter asked the UFC CEO if the investment for UFC 306 has escalated from the previously stated figure of $17 million. White wasted no time in revealing that the MMA promotion was now down by $20 million for the event.
Thereafter, the MMA reporter asked for the amount the venue demanded for test runs. He claimed that he heard that the UFC was charged about a million dollars every single time they had to do a test run. White couldn’t run away from admitting that the UFC was a pretty costly promotion to manage. And UFC 306 was going off the charts.
White answered, “This is an expensive show. And we have to move in there because they have other things going on. And when we go in there and rehearse, we’re in there like from 1 in the morning till 7 in the morning, rehearsing. So, this is a beast, and I’m way more focused on all that stuff than all this other MGM s***, or what they’re doing, or who’s fighting that night. That is what it is, you know. And we’ll figure all this s*** out after this event.”
Dana White says the price tag for the Sphere show has already surpassed $20 million
"This is an expensive show… This is a beast." pic.twitter.com/A3Ri1x3ENL
— MMA Fighting (@MMAFighting) August 28, 2024
Despite the hype that the UFC CEO has been building around UFC Sphere, the event has quite a bit of tickets left unsold. But what could be the reason behind that? Let’s find out!
Unsold tickets cast a shadow of loss at UFC 306
White has left no stone unturned to hype up Noche UFC Sphere. The setup of the Octagon would be different, and it would be nothing short of a theatrical premiere. The UFC head honcho revealed some tidbits about the event during the press conference for UFC 303.
White said, “Normally when we do a fight, we have a truck. There’s gonna be 4 trucks for this event. And we have assembled like literally the most rockstar team on the planet. When I officially get you guys in and walk you through what we are doing, I mean the amount of Oscars, Emmys, Grammy’s the list goes on and on the team that we have assembled to pull this thing off. “
However, UFC 306 is yet to be sold out, as of August 27, 2024. As per the reports, the capacity for UFC 306 is well above 15 thousand. But about 3 thousand tickets are left unsold. This has pointed fingers at the skyrocketed prices for the tickets, which are about $10,000 more than what usual UFC tickets are. On the other hand, the cheapest tickets are being sold for $3000 on the Ticketmaster’s website. White had already reduced the capacity of the seats to 15,000 from a whopping 20,000. If the tickets are still left unsold, it might give a pretty heavy blow to the promotion’s wallet.
If the show turns out to be a success, even at a loss, could White return to the venue at a later date? The BMF title was supposed to be one and done but we have had two BMF title fights in less than 12 months and three BMF champions in UFC history. If the Sphere promises something special, could White plan a revisit, and perhaps with better knowhow on how to handle the venue?
What are your thoughts about the expenses White has approved for UFC 306? Let us know what you think in the comments down below.
The post Bleeding a Million for Every Test Run, Dana White Reveals Scary Numbers Pumped Into UFC 306 Noche at ‘The Sphere’ appeared first on EssentiallySports.
