MMA Payout confirmed with Spike TV that ratings for Saturday night’s UFC Fight Night held in Seattle peaked at 2.4 million viewers. It was the most watched program on cable for the entire day in the key demographics of Men 18-34 and 18-49.
Via Spike TV press release:
Spike TV’s live UFC® Fight Night Live™ on Saturday, March 26 at 10p.m.-12:13a.m. ET was the most watched program on cable for the entire day in Men 18-34 and Men 18-49. Peaking with 2.4 million viewers at 11:15 p.m. for the Dan Hardy-Anthony Johnson bout, the event was the most watched UFC Fight Night since September 2009.
Overall, UFC® Fight Night 24™ delivered a 2.2 rating in Men 18-49, a 2.30 in Men 18-34, a 1.5 household rating, and attracted an average audience of 2.2 million viewers. Compared to last year, the fight improved the timeslot ratings by triple digits including 315% in M18-49, +318% in M18-34, and +128% in viewership.
The broadcast was tape delayed on the west coast and did not play until 9pm. It actually was nice to come home from the fights and then watch them on Spike. It was probably annoying for those that could not watch the fights live.
Payout Perspective:
Would Tito Ortiz have bolstered the ratings for the event or did fill-in Phil Davis help? The high ratings should be attributed to the quality of fighters appearing on the card. Prior Fight Nights had more prospects on the card while the Seattle card had solid match-ups in Little ‘Nog-Davis, Hardy-Johnson and Zombie-Garcia II. The other bout included two former TUF alums in TUF winner Amir Sadollah versus DeMarques Johnson. Hopefully, future Fight Nights will have quality match-ups like the one in Seattle.
Are there viewership numbers available for the Facebook prelims? I skipped them this time. I haven’t had much luck with the feeds in the past.
I think those numbers are kept internal.
I really doubt Ortiz would have boosted the ratings. His last two fights have been very unimpressive, and a lot of casual fans just aren’t aware of his legacy.
Diego: According to a source, the UFC is not releasing Facebook numbers at this time although the viewership has been good.
Payroll for UFC Fight Night is here.