Conor McGregor vs Donald Cerrone reaches two million PPV buys as ‘The Notorious’ makes record-breaking UFC return

Conor McGregor’s successful return to the octagon on Saturday night could well prove to be one of his most lucrative.

The former two-weight world champion needed just 40 seconds to brush aside veteran Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone in the main event of UFC 246 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

And, despite 15 months away of the cage and various indiscretions outside of it, McGregor still possesses an incredible amount of star appeal.

After banking more than $11million in gate money alone, an early report suggests UFC 246 is on course to break more than two million pay-per-view (PPV) buys.

Dan Meltzer, a veteran journalist of the industry with reliable sources and contacts, believes the first UFC event of 2020 sold ‘the equivalent’ of two million PPV buys – although this is not an exact figure.

Meltzer came to this conclusion using the old metrics behind PPV figures, which relies on cable buys and does not take into account the new model of subscriptions. If his estimations are to be proved correct, it would make UFC 246 the second best-selling event in the company's history behind McGregor's fight with Khabib Nurmagomedov in 2018.

To watch McGregor fight in North America, fans would require an ESPN+ subscription and so deducing an exact figure at this moment in time would be purely guesswork. But given Meltzer’s history in the sport, it is definitely a credible estimate.

Before endorsements and official PPV numbers, it is claimed McGregor made almost £60,000 per second during his demolition of ‘Cowboy’ in Sin City which has seemingly opened up a plethora of possibilities at both lightweight and welterweight.

Although a fight with ‘BMF’ title holder Jorge Masvidal at 170lbs is the fan favoured route, head coach John Kavanagh wants to see ‘The Notorious’ fight Justin Gaethje next.