The previous record was set during the battle of Joshua against Wladimir Klitschko in April 2016. Almost the same number of purchases was recorded during a unification bout of Joshua against Joseph Parker.
The first fight Joshua vs Ruiz, which took place in June, was also shown on the British Isles on Pay-Per-View system. As the transfer took place at night local time, it was bought only by 560 thousand people.