MMA Junkie reports that this Friday’s Bellator 83 ratings received a disappointing 105,000 viewer average. The ratings are the second lowest in Bellator history on MTV2.
The low ratings can be attributed to the abrupt cancellation of the main event between Shahbulat Shamhalev and Rad Martinez after officials discovered Shamhalev vomiting backstage prior to the fight. As a safety issue, officials cancelled the fight.
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UFC on FX 6 could have also contributed to Bellator’s low ratings. The decision to cancel the fight was warranted as officials have to protect fighters from themselves. It’s not clear whether it was related to cutting weight, sickness or just nerves. There are times when a commission must step in. Its likely that any fans wanting to see the main event switched channels to watch the UFC once they learned the main event was cancelled.
Chris says
Wasnt this the Dec 7th cards numbers? This wasnt this past Fridays event, there was no UFC event on Dec 7th either.
Bellator 84 was on this friday and that aired against UFC on FX 6, those numbers havent come out yet.
JUICE says
Who?