Conor McGregor's return boosts UFC 329 viewership, attracting nearly 16 million viewers.

McGregor in a UFC promotional poster. Photo: Reproduction/Facebook/UFCIndia

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Conor McGregor 's return to the octagon once again mobilized millions of fans around the world. Even with the serious injury suffered in the main fight of UFC 329 , last Saturday (11), the Irish star helped to register impressive audience numbers, coming in just behind the performance achieved by the historic White House card.

On Thursday, Paramount, the UFC's main broadcast partner, released official figures for the event in the United States and Latin America. In total, the latest numbered event reached 15,9 million viewers, coming very close to the record set by the historic card held at the White House last month, which drew 17 million viewers.

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Furthermore, the event featuring McGregor reached a peak of 8,3 million simultaneous viewers, surpassing UFC White House , which had registered 7,9 million. This performance places UFC 329 as the second-highest simultaneous audience in Paramount history, behind only Super Bowl LVIII, which reached 11,5 million.

Data released by Paramount reinforces that the name 'Notorious' remains one of the UFC's biggest commercial assets. Even after more than five years away from the octagon, the Irishman continues to boost the organization's audience and attract public interest on a global scale.

Still, the numbers could have been even higher. The main event of UFC 329 took place simultaneously with the extra time of the match between Argentina and Switzerland in the World Cup knockout stage, a factor that may have impacted part of the event's audience.

In addition to the main event between Conor McGregor and Max Holloway , the event featured highly publicized fights, such as Paddy Pimblett 's victory over Benoit Saint Denis in the co-main event and the victorious debut of Jon Jones ' protégé , Olympic champion Gable Stevenson . This array of attractions helped transform the event into one of the most-watched of the year and reinforced the organization's growth, which continues to accumulate record audience and engagement figures for its main broadcasts.

Remember McGregor's injury, Pimblett's submission, and Gable's knockout?

🚨 Conor McGregor Injury

🚑 The UFC guide was injured on the right wheel within 3” of starting the fight.

In the images we can see a clear torsion + dynamic roller valgus typical of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries. pic.twitter.com/2AdKo5qQFZ

— Ángel Villanueva (@angelphysio) July 12, 2026

PUT TO SLEEP IN FIFTY SECONDS 🤯

PADDY PIMBLETT JUST EARNED A MASSIVE SUBMISSION VICTORY IN THE #UFC329 CO-MAIN EVENT!

[LIVE ON @ParamountPlus ] pic.twitter.com/Zru5spmIf9

— UFC on Paramount+ (@UFConParamount) July 12, 2026

Made the most of his UFC debut 🙌

Gable Steveson earns the RD1 knockout at #UFC329!

[LIVE NOW on @ParamountPlus ] pic.twitter.com/Y3myqiIrZs

— UFC (@ufc) July 12, 2026

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