Will the UFC return to Boston soon?
UFC 292 went down in Boston, Massachusetts, at TD Garden. The event was an outstanding night of fights and the city of Boston brought great energy to the event. With a successful event in the rearview mirror, will the UFC make plans to return to Boston?
At the UFC 292 post-fight press conference, UFC president Dana White spoke on the success of the event and the possibility of a return to Boston. All quotes via NESN.
“This thing broke tons of records,” White said after Saturday night’s action at TD Garden. “The gate, the pay per view. Social media was massive, too, and now that (Sean O’Malley) won, it’s probably going to be even bigger.”
“We’re the biggest thing other than — the craziest (expletive) sports town on earth — their team that plays here,” White said. “We’re the biggest thing that’s ever been here.”
White, who was born and raised in Boston, told the media that UFC 292 had a sold-out audience of 18,293 people. The event also had a gate of $7.25 million which was the highest for any event outside of the NBA Finals.
With the success of UFC 292, it is likely the UFC returns to Boston. Historically, the UFC will return to cities that play host to successful events. For example, Abu Dhabi and Jacksonville helped the organization immensely during the COVID-19 pandemic and the promotion has continued to visit those cities.
The UFC also went to Boston frequently prior to COVID-19. The promotion has visited Boston seven times with a handful of great cards, including three pay-per-views and several fight night cards with popular headliners. The city has seen stars like Conor McGregor, Sean O’Malley, Chael Sonnen, Francis Ngannou, Stipe Miocic, Dominick Cruz, T.J. Dillashaw and more headline cards.
All things considered, despite the demand for UFC events, it appears like the UFC will be looking to return to Boston relatively quickly. It certainly helps that White was born in Boston.
“Anytime I get an excuse to come back to Boston, I’m coming, believe me,” White said. “Like I say when we go to all these cities — and listen, we’ve been selling out since you could put people back in the arena again, and there’s so many places that we haven’t been. When we do these events, we have lots of sponsors and other people who are here, so people were hitting me up, ‘When are you coming back to Chicago? When are you coming back here? When are you coming back there?’ So, (there are) so many cities that we’ve got to get back to. But I love this city. I love the Encore. I love the food in the North End. I love the steak tips out in South Boston. I’ll get back here as many times as I possibly can.”
A UFC return to Boston would likely have to come in 2024. The promotion’s schedule has few openings left in 2023. As far as pay-per-view events go, the UFC has a location booked for every event. Although, a few fight night slots are available at the tail end of the year. Still, a return at some point in 2024 seems fairly likely.
If the UFC returns to Boston, the promotion will have plenty of talent from the New England arena to put on the card. The promotion could create a great fight night centered around Massachusetts natives Calvin Kattar and Rob Font.
Does Boston deserve another UFC event in the future or should the promotion explore other cities? Let us know in the comments.
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