Canelo Alvarez vs. Edgar Berlanga reported gate falls far short of Noche UFC 306's, PPV buys fail to touch a million

The reported gate for Canelo Alvarez's most recent fight appears to have fallen considerably shorter than that of the UFC's latest event. The boxing icon recently took on Edgar Berlanga on the same night as UFC Noche 306 and according to reports, the pay-per-view (PPV) buys for the boxing card failed to hit the one-million mark.

Alvarez defended his WBA (Super), WBC, WBO, and Ring Magazine super middleweight titles with a unanimous decision victory over the previously undefeated Edgar Berlanga Jr. Their fight headlined a boxing card at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.A., on Sept. 14, 2024.

Around the same time, the world's premier MMA organization, UFC, held its Noche UFC 306 pay-per-view at the Sphere in Las Vegas. It was the second-ever Noche UFC, honoring Mexico and its combat culture.

It was also the first-ever UFC event with a title sponsor. It was backed by Saudi Arabia's 'Riyadh Season' venture and overseen by Saudi Arabian GEA (General Entertainment Authority) chairman, His Excellency Turki Alalshikh. UFC 306 featured several Mexican and non-Mexican fighters and also boasted a six-chapter audiovisual presentation, which covered Mexico's rich history and culture.

According to the Sports Business Journal (SBJ), the Alvarez-Berlanga event amassed a $17 million live gate (ticket sales) and garnered 650k PPV buys. Despite falling short of the one-million mark, the card performed better than an expected, and is a testament to Alvarez's status as arguably the biggest star in boxing today.

Meanwhile, UFC 306, headlined by a pair of title fights and other exciting matchups, fared even better. The UFC event reportedly accrued a $22 million live gate. During the UFC 306 post-fight press conference, White confirmed the live gate as being $22 million and attendance as 16,024.

Though the attendance for Alvarez-Berlanga was higher, at 20,312, the UFC 306 tickets were priced higher which helped the UFC secure greater ticket sales revenues.

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Dana White's intriguing reaction to potential Canelo Alvarez vs. Conor McGregor fight

After Conor McGregor's entry into boxing against Floyd Mayweather Jr., many believed Canelo Alvarez would make for an excellent opponent for the Irishman. Many believe the MMA legend, who's still contractually obligated to the UFC and hasn't competed in any combat sport since July 2021, is eyeing a boxing match against the Mexican. Alvarez recently claimed he's open to boxing the former two-division UFC champion next year.

Furthermore, during a recent interview with Manouk Akopyan, Dana White was asked about a potential Canelo Alvarez-Conor McGregor fight. His reaction was somewhat ambiguous, leading many fans to speculate that the hypothetical fight could materialize in 2025. White said:

"Having trouble with the audio over here ... Haha, I heard ya! Let's bookmark that one for 2025. Let's put a pin in that."

Watch White's response below (11:00):