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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
Though the number is only an early estimate, and the final numbers could be much higher or lower, the UFC 114: Rampage vs. Evans pay-per-view event is coming in as one of the best pay-per-view buyrates in the history of the UFC.
According to Dave Meltzer in the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the earliest cable estimates for the event have it at 925,000 buys. That number would surpass Dana White's expectations of 850,000 for the event, which featured one of the most hyped non-title main events in the UFC's history between Rashad Evans and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson.
Not only would it surpass White's expectations, if the number comes down around this estimate it will be the fourth largest buyrate ever in the UFC, behind only the 1.6 million for UFC 100, 1.05 million for the 2006 Chuck Liddell vs. Tito Ortiz fight, and 1 million for UFC 92 in December of 2008.
The card far surpassed the buyrate of any event without a Title fight on the card, as no prior event had gotten past 600,000 buys. The buzz surrounding the fight was bigger than any in recent memory, and after a very lagging winter for the UFC, they have re-emerged with a major string of successful business.
Penick's Analysis: This is not really a surprising number, but it is a testament to the job the UFC did to get the hype back for this fight after it didn't take place in December. The show was a let down for many after the main event saw Rashad Evans spend a lot of the fight holding Rampage against the cage, but the hype was what mattered for this one to get up to these types of numbers. With UFC 116 just a month away, the UFC is going to have another fight that gets at least to this point, and more likely even higher.
RELATED STORY: UFC 114 POST FIGHT: Rampage Jackson says loss to Rashad Evans will haunt him for a long time: [CLICK TO READ FULL ARTICLE]
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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