The Wrestling Observer Newsletter reported that the four and half hour broadcast of K-1 Dynamite drew a 11.9 rating, down 12% from last year’s 13.5 rating. TBS finished in third place for night behind NHK’s Red & White concert (38.9 rating) and a NTV comedy show (15.4). The Fuji Network, the former home of Pride on New Year’s Eve, drew a 4.4 rating.
The good news is that TBS gave the impression that it remains committed to its New Year’s Eve fighting tradition, although perhaps in a shorter time block. The network aired boxing as a lead-in to Dynamite as an experiment, but the bout featuring WBA Flyweight Champion Takefumi Sakata drew only a 9.0 rating.
The highest rated quarter hour was the debut of the masked Kinniku Mantaro against Bob Sapp with an 18.1 rating (19 million viewers). The Observer noted that it was Sapp’s third year as the top draw of the night, following a 24.5 rating for his bout with Yoshihiro Takayama in 2002 and a 42.5 rating (54 million viewers) for his record setting bout with Akebono.
Mirko Cro Cop v. Hong Man Choi drew a 15.9 rating, a 14% increase over the rating drawn by last year’s Choi v. Fedor fight.