The following is a brief breakdown of how well the UFC and HBO Boxing did in 2007 by way of PPV numbers. Obviously the popularity of both sports runs deeper than simply pay-per-view figures. I couldn’t locate a list of HBO numbers as far as each event went, but you have to take into account that De La Hoya and Mayweather are probably responsible for a majority of the PPV buys. Similarly, Rampage and Chuck had a lot to do with boosting the UFC numbers. The UFC events combined for 4,885,000 views totaling $194.5 million. UFC 70 & 75 were SPIKE events. Boxing did 4,795,000 PPV’s for $239.75.
UFC 67 - Silva v. Lutter - 400,000
UFC 68 - Slyvia v. Couture - 540,000
UFC 69 - St. Pierre v. Serra - 400,000
UFC 71 - Liddell v. Jackson II - 675,000
UFC 72 - Franklin v. Okami - 200,000
UFC 73 - Ortiz v. Evans - 425,000
UFC 74 - Couture v. Gonzaga - 520,000
UFC 76 - Liddell v. Jardine - 475,000
UFC 77 - Franklin v. Silva II - 325,000
UFC 78 - Evans v. Bisbing - 325,000
UFC 79 - Liddell v. Silva - 600,000
HBO Boxing - 4,795,000 (total) among main events including:
Mayweather v. Hatton
Cotto v. Mosley
Pacquiao v. Barrera
Hopkins v. Wright
De La Hoya v. Mayweather
Cotto v. Judah
MMAowned, I think not. Boxing has something to worry about.