Mayweather Vs McGregor has crashed the UFC Fight Pass login servers - and fans around the globe are angry as hell about it. The brawl has been delayed as PPV attempts to sort out the streaming issues. The event which was supposed to take place at 11 pm ET in Las Vegas, is one of 2017's most anticipated sporting events. Fans had shelled out thousands of dollars for tickets to see the fight live - while those at home paid lofty Pay Per View prices to watch Mayweather and McGregor battle from the comfort of their own living room. However, one subset of viewers may be left out in the cold - and without any way to see the fight.
Why Isn't UFC Fight Pass Working?
UFC Fight Pass customers are currently unable to login - due to "overwhelming volume of requests" and "overwhelming traffic" on UFC's servers. While anyone who has ever tried to order an iPhone on pre-order night can attest, it's easy for servers to get overloaded when a massive amount of people flood one website in a small window of time - and the problem only snowballs as impatient users frantically try over and over, racking up multiple (failed) attempts.
Still, it's incredible (and frankly unacceptable) that UFC wasn't prepared for the influx of traffic. It's not as though Mayweather Vs McGregor wasn't going to be a huge event.
Here's what fans who are experiencing the error are seeing (if they can see anything at all):
UFC promises the "log in" issues would be resolved shortly but "officially" threw in the towel a couple hours later - instructing users to find an alternative provider (where they would have to pay again):
Meanwhile, as subscribers flooded support with complaints and demands for refunds, that didn't prompt Fight Pass to remove earlier tweets with links to where users would purchase the fight:
So where can UFC fans who are affected watch the Mayweather Vs. McGregor fight? Unfortunately, Fight Pass may be unusable for many buyers throughout the night - even if UFC attempts to run damage control. That means that customers may be forced to choose between one of two options (if they still want to watch Mayweather and McGregor): pay (again) - this time through a cable provider - or find a pirated stream (given that fans already paid UFC for the fight, it'd be hard to blame them).
For those who intend to go the legit route, the best bet is to order Mayweather vs. McGregor on Showtime PPV.
Of course, should viewers be open (and able) to leave their home (and carefully planned fight parties that are now sans fight), fans might be able to find a local bar or restaurant showing the fight.
Will UFC Issue Refunds to Fight Pass Subscribers?
So far, it's not looking good.
If Twitter is any indication, several users have hit a dead end when attempting to contact UFC Fight Pass support - which appears completely unprepared to handle the flood of angry fans.
Even if Fight Pass does find a way to make the login issues up to subscribers, there's no doubt that the problem is going to discourage fans from going the UFC Fight Pass route in the future - even if they weren't directly impacted by tonight's mess. Viewers who shelled out $100 for the stream in the first place likely had their viewing party set up the exact way they wanted - with all their favorite snacks and drinks - and few probably imagined they'd be scrambling last minute to watch the fight at all.
We'll keep you posted on whether or not UFC Fight Pass manages to get their servers up and running for all users - or whether the service will provide refunds to subscribers impacted by the login crash.