"Ultimate Fighting: From Blood Sport to Big Time" Scores For CNBC

by Luke Thomas on Dec 18, 2007 11:09 AM EST in News Comment 0 comments

Shocker of the century: MMA programming on television - from documentaries about the sport to the sport itself - does really well in the ratings. Just ask CNBC:

CNBC's documentary "Ultimate Fighting: From Blood Sport to Big Time" premiered last Thursday at 10pmET, and was the highest rated first airing of a documentary ever on CNBC in the A25-54 demo. It was the highest premiere in total households since the July documentary "Big Mac: Inside the McDonald's Empire."

The 10pmET original broadcast rated at 221,000 in the A25-54 demo and 320,000 for total households. The documentary also scored well in its repeat at 1amET, with 120,000 in demo and 147,000 in households.

While hardcores are somewhat hostile to the milquetoast nature of the content in this piece, the non-hardcores I've talked to who watched the special had positive things to say. They thought CNBC had a generally skeptical yet positive attitude and more importantly, thought Jim Lampley looked desperate and threatened by MMA (which he most certainly is).

A lot of us thought MMA might be cooling down, but 2008 could wind up being even bigger than 2007. Ortiz will be on NBC, the UFC is planning several mega fights, and the sport is continuing to grow worldwide. Pinch yourself, folks. This is the golden age.