The city of Edmonton pulled out all the stops for the UFC this weekend, resulting in a new record for the sport.
UFC Fight Night was held in Rogers Place on Saturday night as Mexico’s Brandon Moreno and Iraq’s Amir Albazi went head-to-head in the headlining main card event. It was Moreno who ended up getting the win in the flyweight bout, but the sport as a whole came out on top in the Alberta capital.
The Edmonton event brought in a whopping $3.6 million at the gate, which sets the record for the highest-ever gross for a North American UFC Fight Night.
Sportsnet’s Aaron Bronsteter was the first to report the figures.
#UFCEdmonton breaks the record for the highest-grossing UFC Fight Night in North American history with a $2,600,463 (USD)Â / $3,632,196.36 (CAD) gate.
Attendance: 16,439
— Aaron Bronsteter (@aaronbronsteter) November 3, 2024
A total of 16,439 fans packed into Rogers Place to witness over three hours of fights in the Octagon, making it one of the longest-ever UFC Fight Nights. Those fans had plenty to cheer for as injured Edmonton Oilers forward Evander Kane was in the crowd to take in the action.
Trading ice for the Octagon 🏒
Welcome to #UFCEdmonton, @EvanderKane đź‘‹ pic.twitter.com/i4O9SNnKJp
— UFC (@ufc) November 2, 2024
Some fighters got the memo about how hockey-mad the city of Edmonton is. Moroccan fighter Youssef Zalal let his Oilers pride shine after winning his fight.
"CANADA, LET'S GO OILLLERRRRRRSSSSS!" – @moroccandevil45 @EdmontonOilers | #UFCEdmonton pic.twitter.com/O9aR9IwXXs
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) November 2, 2024
UFC flyweight fighter Jasmine Jasudavicius also gave Edmonton fans a reason to get on their feet as she entered the ring to “La Bamba,” the Oilers’ win song for several seasons now.Â
La Bamba intro in Edmonton, well done @JasJasudavicius 🤝 pic.twitter.com/Vg0c7bqGYz
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) November 3, 2024
Edmonton Sports Talk’s Tom Gazzola reported that UFC had mentioned a willingness to return to the Alberta capital.
Over 16,000 in attendance at Rogers Place tonight and announced as the highest grossing UFC Fight Night in history.
UFC says it will probably come back to Edmonton with a pay-per-view event in the future. pic.twitter.com/UHAVwZhrkC
— Tom Gazzola (@TomGazzola) November 3, 2024
It appears that the UFC is interested in Edmonton for future Alberta events and Calgary as well. Over the weekend, it was reported that there is lots of interest in the UFC returning to Calgary as soon as the city’s new Scotia Place is built over the next couple of years.