Last night’s Vasiliy Lomachenko-Guillermo Rigondeaux fight was the second highest-rated boxing telecast on cable in 2017 according to Nielsen overnight ratings via ESPN. The fight which was won by Lomachenko, was second only to the Manny Pacquiao-Jeff Horn fight this past July.
Although no viewership ratings are yet available, Nielsen indicates that it drew a 1.3 metered market rating. Pacquiao-Horn drew 2.4 rating. Third and fourth on the list of highest-rated shows were the two undercards on Saturday night. Shakur Stevenson vs. Oscar Mendoza and Michael Conlan-Luis Molina drew 1.1 metered market ratings on ESPN.
Payout Perspective:
The Heisman Trophy Presentation which preceded the big night of boxing likely helped the event. The lead-in is one of the reasons why Top Rank decided to move to ESPN. Lomachenko-Rigondeaux was a marquee matchup from the time it was announced and it received major hype from boxing community and many casuals were interested. Without knowing the UFC or Bellator numbers, its clear this event was the main viewership for combat sporting events on Saturday night.
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