Former two-division UFC champion Conor McGregor wants to add another record to his list of achievements when he takes on Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 on Saturday night.
The Irishman will be looking to exact revenge on Poirier for his January defeat and in the process claim the bragging rights in their fighting trilogy.
But McGregor also has his sights set on a different goal, as he explained in an interview with Rolling Stone this week.
McGregor already features in each of the UFC’s top five most-watched pay-per-view events of all time.
And now he hopes to eclipse all of them by drawing the biggest pay-per-view number in UFC history and beating the 2.4 million buys achieved when he fought Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 229 in 2018.
“I’ll break records on the PPV,” McGregor stated.
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“I know that’s the expectation. I’ve been in big fights before, and it’s always electric, and this one will probably be the biggest so far.
“Having fans there this time is going to add even more to the atmosphere.
“So, I’m truly so excited, and I’m going to put on a show.”
McGregor’s second-round TKO defeat to Poirier at UFC 257 in January garnered 1.6 million pay-per-view buys, and McGregor is looking to help the UFC deliver a much bigger number this weekend as the UFC hosts a big-time pay-per-view show in front of a capacity crowd in Las Vegas for the first time since the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic.
With McGregor’s return, plus the return of the Las Vegas fight fans, UFC president Dana White is excited for the occasion that’s about to unfold in Sin City this weekend.
“Saturday night is going to be f*****g insane,” White told MMA Junkie/USA Today ahead of fight week.
“Most celebrities ever at an event in the last 20 years, more pre-buys ever.”
And the UFC president implored the fans to get their purchases in well ahead of time as he predicted McGregor’s latest outing would smash the 3 million pay-per-view buys barrier.
“All of you out there, if you know that you’re going to watch the fight on Saturday night, buy it now,” he said.
“Don’t wait until Saturday when 3 million other people are trying to do it and you have a hard time getting it in.
“We have the most pre-buys ever right now and believe me, go to ESPN+ and do it now.”
UFC 264 is also a pay-per-view event for UK viewers, with the show available to purchase for £19.99 via BT Sport Box Office.