UFC will always be remembered as the first promotion that resumed sports following the pandemic. The return gave fans a taste of sports, and consequently, garnered a large PPV buy rate.
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Even with time, people’s interest in sports hasn’t diluted. This holds even with NBA, MLB, and NASCAR back on television screens. The free to view preliminary and early preliminary cards, too, garner numerous views.
This is a clear sign of the progress made by what was to be relegated as an underground fight promotion at the start of the century.
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Last Saturday’s UFC 252 prelims averaged a six-digit viewership.
“UFC 252 prelims averaged 831K viewers on ESPN….that is the most viewers for a PPV prelim since May, when they drew 1.15 million prelim viewers for their first PPV after the covid layoff….”
UFC 252 prelims averaged 831K viewers on ESPN….that is the most viewers for a PPV prelim since May, when they drew 1.15 million prelim viewers for their first PPV after the covid layoff…. https://t.co/42933ifbAz
— Robert Joyner (@robnashville) August 19, 2020
The high viewership rate bodes well for everyone involved. This is because the fans get to see emerging talent, and the companies rake in the moolah. Moreover, new stars get exposure and following, thus propelling them to more fights and the eventual main card status.
UFC 252 comes second only to UFC 249
The number was way off the seven digits amassed at UFC 249. However, the offering from Vystar Veterans Memorial Arena was a stacked affair.
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It featured veterans like Donald Cerrone and Aleksei Oleinik and former champions Fabricio Werdum and Carla Esparza on the preliminary card.
Werdum was on his comeback fight following a two-year suspension. Despite mounting a late comeback, he lost to the Russian veteran Oleinik.
UFC 252’s prelims featured six fights. Four went to the judges’ scorecards for decisions, and two were finishes. One of these saw a speedy submission to help Virna Jandiroba enter the top five for the fastest strawweight division submissions.
Do you feel the company has grown so much that the preliminary cards manage attention akin to the main cards? Or was last Saturday just a fluke?
