UFC exec Dave Shaw reacts to record-breaking UFC on ESPN 64: 'We've planted our flag'

USA Today

31-03-2025

MEXICO CITY – UFC on ESPN 64 was a record-breaking event for the promotion.
The event headlined by Brandon Moreno vs. Steve Erceg at Arena CDMX broke records for the UFC in Mexico as the promotion's highest-grossing event in the country and the highest-grossing event in the arena's history.
It was a successful night by many measures, and the promotion hopes to go even bigger when it returns to Mexico on September 13 for the third Noche UFC event, UFC 320 in Guadalajara. The UFC has not made two trips to Mexico in a calendar year in a decade, which is something that excites the UFC executives, including Dave Shaw.
'It's important for our strategy in Mexico and Latin America for us to come more than once,' Shaw told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a post-fight news conference. 'It's also the one-year anniversary of our Performance Institute opening, which is an accolade and an accomplishment that our entire team has been really proud of.
'We've planted our flag. We're here. If anyone was at the opening 12 months ago, and then has returned at any point in the last 12 months, there's been a lot of progress at the PI. … We're thrilled. Two events in Mexico this year, next installment of Noche, as we've talked about, and further success of the UFC Performance Institute here.'
For the first time since committing to the Noche UFC branding to celebrate Mexican Independence Day, the promotion will bring the event to Mexico. The first two events took place in Las Vegas, at T-Mobile Arena and Sphere. Arena Guadalajara is a brand new venue in the city that holds up to 20,000 people. Shaw says the promotion is excited to hold an event there early to highlight the fighters from the region.
'Think about it – we've got our 42 events, and our events our pay-per-views and Fight Nights, and we've got all these other brands that sit on top of our events that help exemplify the true state of athleticsm that our athletes bring,' Shaw said. 'Contender Series, Ultimate Fighter, Road to UFC, what we did with Fight Island, and now you've got this franchise brand called Noche.
'Bringing Noche to Mexico for the first time is something that was really important to Dana (White), important to (Craig) Borsari and a number of the other members of our team. So I think to come back and celebrate Mexican culture again on the weekend of Independence Day is really important for us.'
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie's event hub for UFC on ESPN 64.