ONE Championship returned to Colorado for ONE 168: Denver on Sep. 6, and the event shined in U.S. primetime. After the numbers were finalized, the event shined even brighter on the bottom line.
More than 10,000 screaming fans made their way inside the Ball Arena in downtown Denver for the incredible event. When it was all tallied, the gate exceeded $1.2 million at the box office, per Dave Meltzer of The Wrestling Observer.
“That’s an amazing number for that promotion. It was way above what the NXT show five days earlier did, which would be about 6,000 actual paid at much lower prices,” wrote Meltzer.
The WWE was in town the week of ONE’s U.S. return. On Sep. 1, the NXT developmental brand ran its premium live event, No Mercy, followed by Monday Night Raw on Sep. 2.
Neither gate matched what ONE drew, showing the strength of combat sports in Colorado.
“The idea that ONE, in the same market, could beat Raw in gate is mind-boggling, especially when you consider that the gate for ONE in Denver was more than the entire gate of every single show the promotion did every single year dating back to at least 2018,” continued Meltzer.
ONE’s return to the U.S. continued to highlight the growth of Muay Thai, with Jonathan Haggerty and Superlek Kiatmoo9 headlining the night. The packed audience roared with excitement throughout the night and continued to show why Denver is a hot market for martial arts.
The strong performance at the gate for ONE shows their push into the domestic market has a strong foothold with room to grow in the future. Undoubtedly, the promotion was pleased with another standout night in the Mile High City.