Despite being unquestionably the most entertaining event on the channel to date, ‘UFC On FOX 4’ didn’t prove to be a ratings winner on Saturday night.
The final official figures released today show that an average of 2.44 million viewers tuned into the four-fight event, up 310,000 from the original estimate on Sunday.
The event peaked with an audience of 3.3 million for the main event between ‘Shogun’ Rua and Branon Vera, while it also pulled a 1.44 household rating.
That leaves the event roughly on par with ‘UFC On FOX 3’ which also drew 2.4 million viewers with a card headlined by Nate Diaz and Jim Miller back in May.
On paper Saturday’s show looked stronger, featuring two former light-heavyweight champions in Lyoto Machida and Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua, but the fact that the event was going up against the Olympics whose coverage on NBC has proven to be ratings gold meant it was always going to be a tough to compete.
Nevertheless it’s still got to be chalked down as a disappointment when you consider that the first FOX show drew an average of 5.7 million viewers, while ‘UFC On FOX 2’ did 4.7 million.
