Tomorrow night, fight fans will converge on the Smoothie King Center for UFC 318. Lafayette native Dustin Poirier will fight for the final time, facing Max Holloway for the third time.
Does an event like this open new opportunities for the Superdome and Smoothie King Center?
"We certainly hope so," Superdome and Smoothie King Center spokesman Mike Hoss said, noting that the UFC is no longer a fringe form of entertainment. "They are consolidated. They are big. They are worldwide."
That's evidenced by the fans who are already in town for today's fight weigh-in and tomorrow's fan tailgate. It's also evidenced by tickets selling between $500 and $11,000 on the resale market. According to Hoss, the fan response could help cement New Orleans as a UFC destination.
"Cities and venues are going to go after it big time, and I know we will because we can see the impact already that it has on the city," Hoss said.
Hoss says those fight fans will have some company along Dave Dixon Drive. That's because the Superdome is hosting a Youth Lutheran Conference at the same time.
"We have this event going on, and it's a three- or four-day event, and across the street at the Superdome, there is a Lutheran youth gathering that's going on for five days at literally the same time," Hoss said. "Saturday night, (there's) something at the Superdome for 25,000 young people and UFC 318 here at the Smoothie King Center."
Regardless of whose hand is raised in the octagon, Hoss says New Orleans will be the big winner.
"Wow! What a victory for the city to have that in July when it's tough and you have tropical stuff out there that you're watching!" Hoss said.