Photo: Tammy Wood
BILLIE-ANNA MAHER
Irish pubs in Brisbane were jam-packed with McGregor fans on Sunday for the highest grossing and most talked about fight in boxing history.
The professional debut of the wildly popular Irish MMA fighter, Conor McGregor, against undefeated champion Floyd Mayweather promised a massive turnout, with many Irish pubs cashing in on the fan base in Brisbane.
Marketing manager for Finn McCool’s, Tammy Wood, says the fight was one of the biggest events they have hosted, rivalled only by the St. Patrick’s day events.
“It was an absolutely massive event…we had well over 1000 people. It was up there with the St. Patrick’s Day event, it was absolutely crazy,“ Ms Wood said on Monday.
Another popular Irish pub, Mick O’Malleys, was also booked out for the fight.
Bar manager Jason Sullivan said the event had an excellent vibe with many loyal Irish fans making an appearance to support their star athlete.
‘It was so hustle and bustle, but it was definitely a gallant affair… there was a very Irish vibe about the place… from about 12 to 4 there would have been around 400 to 450 people in the pub,” Mr Sullivan said.
According to Mr Sullivan, McGregor’s loss did not affect the atmosphere, and the Irish fans were proud of McGregor for stepping out of his comfort zone and giving it a go.
“At the end of the day I think people would have been a lot more disappointed if he hadn’t put up a show and got through a few rounds…we were mostly proud he took a step outside of his comfort zone and went for it, which is definitely the Irish way,” Mr Sullivan said.
“[It doesn’t matter if he wins or loses], I don’t think his stardom will ever be touched,” he said.
The fight was aired at more than 160 pubs, clubs and hotels across Brisbane on Sunday afternoon.
Foxtel stated in a press release Monday morning that the fight was the second highest pay per view event of all time for Foxtel on Main Event.
For Australians, it came second only to the Mundine Green fight held in 2006.
I’m pretty sure it was the highest paid pay per view fight/event ever, with around 6.5 million pay-per views according to the president of the UFC (Dana White) not second highest as reported by Foxtel. The second highest would have been the Floyd Mayweather jr. vs Manny Pacquiao which garnerd close to 4.5 million views. Either or great article and look forward to reading more from this talented journo!