Despite having a light heavyweight title tilt at the top of the
bill,
Bellator 244 was not a ratings success for the California-based
promotion.
According to
ShowBuzz Daily, Friday’s main card averaged just 275,000
viewers on Paramount Network — the lowest of five cards held in
2020 by Bellator. The event was simulcast on Dazn, but viewership
figures for the paid streaming service are not released.
Bellator 244 took place at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville,
Connecticut, and was headlined by a 205-pound championship clash
between Vadim
Nemkov and Ryan Bader.
Nemkov claimed the light heavyweight throne with a second-round
knockout of the former UFC standout, while former women’s
featherweight queen Julia Budd
earned a dominant three-round verdict over Jessy Miele
in the co-main event.
The previous low for a Bellator card came on July 24, when Bellator
242 “Pettis vs. Bandejas” averaged 277,000 viewers on Paramount
Network. Just two weeks prior, however, a Bellator 243 lineup
topped by Michael
Chandler vs. Benson
Henderson attracted an audience of 403,000 — the best so far
for the promotion this year.
Bellator 244 finished 79th of the top 150 programs televised on
cable this past Friday, drawing a .09 in the 18-to-49-year-old
demographic. The Scott Coker-led organization will return with
back-to-back events on Sept. 11 and Sept. 12.