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UFC on ESPN 23 draws 538K, prelims 497K

May 4, 2021 by Jason Cruz Leave a Comment

UFC Fight Night this past Saturday on ESPN2 drew 538,000 viewers per Nielsen via ShowBuzz Daily.  The 7pm PST airing drew 0.17 in the A18-49 demo, or 224,000 viewers.

The Prelims which preceded it on ESPN2 drew 497,000 and 182,000 in the A18-49 demo.

The main card drew 0.17 in the A18-49, 0.11 in F18-49, 0.24 in M18-49, 0.12, in A18-34, 0.05 in F12-34, 0.13 in M12-34, 0.20 in A25-54 and 0.26 in over 50.

The prelims were 26th overall and drew 0.14 in A18-49, 0.07 in F18-49, 0.21 in A18-49, 0.08 in A18-34, 0.05 in F12-34, 0.08 in M12-34, 0.17 in A25-54 and 0.24 in over 50.

The main card featured Dominick Reyes facing Jiri Prochazka in a light heavyweight duel.  Prochazka ended up with an impressive stoppage with a spinning elbow to end the night.

The prelims featured Randa Markos and Luana Pinheiro in what was a controversial disqualification ending with Pinheiro receiving the victory.

Payout Perspective:

The UFC Fight Night main card finished in the top 10 overall in cable on Saturday night which was a good outcome.  Unlike other ESPN cards, this one was later in the evening on the east coast as the main card did not start until 10pm EST.  The prelims also aired around the same time as the Kentucky Derby (albeit the Derby had its lowest viewership since May 2008).  In addition, the Andy Ruiz PPV was airing at the same time as the main card.

Filed Under: ESPN, ratings, UFC

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