UFC on ESPN 1 Main Card Averages 1.463 Million Viewers
By: Tristen Critchfield Feb 20, 2019
The Ultimate Fighting Championship’s debut on ESPN Network appears
to be a success.
According to
ShowBuzz Daily, the UFC on ESPN 1 main averaged 1.463 million
viewers on Sunday night, making it the highest rated Fight Night
card on cable television since UFC Fight Night 81 averaged 2.288
million viewers for an event headlined by a bantamweight title bout
between T.J.
Dillashaw and Dominick
Cruz in January 2016.
UFC on ESPN 1 took place at Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix
and was headlined by a heavyweight showdown between Francis
Ngannou and former champion Cain
Velasquez. Ngannou. Ngannou spoiled Velasquez’s return, winning
via technical knockout in just 26 seconds.
The card, which saw Paul Felder
defeat James Vick
via unanimous decision in the co-main event, drew an 0.86 share in
the 18-to-49 demographic and was above average in all
demographics.
Meanwhile, the UFC on ESPN 1 prelims averaged 988,000 viewers on
ESPN. That portion of the card was headlined by a key bantamweight
showdown between Aljamain
Sterling and Jimmie
Rivera, which Sterling won by decision.