2024 may not have been the golden era of boxing, where legendary bouts emerged at every turn, but it marked a significant leap forward in the quality of fights compared to recent years. The top five boxing events alone amassed an impressive $66.3 million in gate revenue. But which fights drew the most fans to the arenas?

This year saw Oleksandr Usyk cement his legacy as the undisputed heavyweight champion, Ryan Garcia delivered a stunning demolition of Devin Haney, and Artur Beterbiev claimed the undisputed light heavyweight crown. Yet, only a select few fights captivated enough fans to pack the venues. Here are the top five boxing events of 2024 that had fans flocking to witness history live.

Canelo Alvarez vs. Edgar Berlanga

Canelo Alvarez’s last fight against Puerto Rico’s Edgar Berlanga on September 14th had fans eager to catch the action live. Alvarez’s feud with Berlanga before the fight made things interesting as well. When the fight night finally came around at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, the event collected $17 million in live gate revenue, per Sports Business General.

There were a reported 20,312 people in attendance for the fight, a little over its maximum capacity of 20,000. In addition to that, the event managed to collect 650K pay-per-view buys. However, it wasn’t all hunky dory for the Canelo-Berlanga bout. Despite raking in $17 million, the event fell short of overcoming the success UFC 306 saw. 

You see, UFC 306 was in direct competition with the Canelo-Berlanga event. In fact, the two events were held in the same city—practically just across the street from each other. Even though the Canelo-Berlanga event managed to keep the ticket prices low and attracted more people, UFC beat them with a gate revenue of $22 million with 16,024 in attendance. 

Overall though Canelo Alvarez’s event was a smash hit, which is undeniably a testament to his massive star power. Canelo would go on to defeat Edgar Berlanga via unanimous decision, proving why he is a pound-for-pound king. However, if Canelo decides to face a real challenge, like David Benavidez or Terence Crawford, the event could see record-breaking numbers in the future. 

Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson

Despite his label as a gimmick fighter, 2024 was all about Jake Paul! He started the year by defeating Mike Perry. And then, he fought legendary Mike Tyson in November. Even though the fight left much to be desired—like many predicted Tyson gassed out after the first round and eventually lost to Jake Paul—the event itself managed to produce big numbers. 

Netflix, which live-streamed the event on its streaming platform, reported a peak concurrent viewership of 65 million during the event. However, the stream ran into several streaming issues, with fans taking their frustration to social media. Still, a reported 72,300 fans at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, faced no such problems.

The event broke Canelo Alvarez’s previous record in the state by collecting a staggering $18.1 million through gate revenue. Not to forget, a portion of the success can also be credited to Amanda Serrano vs. Katie Taylor‘s rematch on the undercard of the Paul-Tyson fight, who, unlike Paul and Tyson, went on an absolute war. Taylor defended her titles by securing a unanimous decision win. 

Gervonta Davis vs. Frank Martin

There’s a reason Gervonta Davis is called the ‘Face of Boxing.’ After staying out of the sport for over a year following his knockout win over Ryan Garcia in April last year, fans were eager to see the Baltimore native back in action. So, he came back with a fight against the relatively unknown Frank Martin at the MGM Grand, Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on June 15th.

Martin didn’t prove much of a challenge for ‘Tank,’ as Davis knocked out Martin in the 8th round of the fight. However, the fight showed how much people really want to see Davis in the ring. The bout reportedly collected $13.6 million in gate revenue, according to Boxing Tickets on X. Boxing Scene reported that there were 13,249 fans in attendance for the fight. 

The event also sold between 325,000 and 350,000 pay-per-view buys across all platforms and grossed an estimated $26 million plus, per Dan Rafael of Fight Freaks Unite. David Benavidez also appeared on the undercard of the fight, facing off against Oleksandr Gvozdyk, which also contributed to the event’s popularity. 

Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haney

There is, of course, the most unusual boxing event of the year. While nothing unusual happened during the event, the lead-up to it and the aftermath left many fans shocked. Ryan Garcia presented a series of erratic and bizarre behavior on social media before the fight, which added to the suspense. However, no one expected him to win against Devin Haney. 

Garcia even came 3.2 lbs overweight to the fight, losing his chances of collecting Haney’s then-WBC super lightweight title. When the fight finally went underway, Garcia was levels above Haney, as he dropped Haney three times en route to a majority decision win. The fight reportedly collected $9.2 million in gate revenue and 972,000 PPV buys.

Garcia had shocked the world with his performance, but as most of you might know by now, Garcia tested positive for Ostarine. VADA revealed the update a few days later, and it started a storm in the community. ‘King Ry’ was eventually suspended from boxing for a year, and fined his entire fight purse. 

The win was also turned into a no-contest, and Devin Haney has since sued Garcia for fraud, battery, and breach of contract. The pair is expected to have their rematch when Garcia comes out of suspension in April, but the future of that bout seems uncertain. However, if this rematch does end up happening, it will definitely be a hit affair. 

Terence Crawford vs. Israil Madrimov

Former undisputed welterweight champion Terence Crawford might want a fight against Canelo Alvarez, but he had to settle for a fight with Israil Madrimov in August earlier this year. The event was His Excellency Turki Alalshikh’s first in the United States, which aimed to penetrate the boxing scene in the country. 

While it proved to be somewhat successful, the Saudis have since decided to orchestrate the rest of their events in Saudi Arabia. Regardless, Crawford’s fight against Madrimov managed to earn a reported $8.4 million with 17,999 fans in attendance at the event. The bout also seems to have done somewhere around 75k and 100k pay-per-view sales—not much, but enough to make it a success. 

His Excellency even reached out to Canelo Alvarez during this event with an offer for him to fight Crawford. However, Canelo’s demand to make the fight happen ended in the discussions quickly falling apart. Regardless, Crawford managed to struggle past Madrimov to secure a unanimous decision win in his first super welterweight fight. 

That being said, it was a great year for boxing and the list could have had more mentions, but other big fights were mostly held in Saudi Arabia, and clear details about the gate revenue from those fights aren’t available. Anyway, what did you think about the biggest boxing events in 2024?