The hype surrounding the UFC 264 main event, the culmination of the triolgy between Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor, was considerable. To accompany the prospect of a lightweight title shot for the victor, the bout was further intensified by the return of McGregor’s legendary heel persona. Loved by some fans and maligned by others, the Irish superstar has nevertheless remained the biggest star in mixed martial arts history, as the event drew 1.8 million buys globally, eclipsing the 1.6 million mark set by the pair in January for their second fight.

The number represents the second-most purchases of a pay-per-view show in UFC history. First, of course, is the UFC 229 card headlined by McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov in 2018 (2.4 million). The third-highest sits at 1.6 million buys each for Poirier vs McGregor 2 and Diaz vs McGregor 2. It stands to reason that a third fight between McGregor and Nate Diaz would do similar numbers. Poirier’s defeat of McGregor had Dana White calling for a fourth matchup between the pairing, which could land in that range as well.

Of the highest-selling UFC shows, a large amount of them have McGregor’s name on them. The Irishman has been in the main event of almost every UFC pay-per-view card he has ever been on, and all but one of those events was purchased by a million people or more.