Despite a controversial main event, Bellator Fighting Championships' electrifying fifth season ended on a high note. According to figures collected by MMA Nation, the promotion's heavyweight and bantamweight tournament finale drew approximately 265,000 viewers, fifth most in Bellator history.
Bellator closed out their fifth season in style with strong viewership for the second week in a row.
One week after hitting a season-low in viewership, Bellator came back twice as strong.
Viewership for Bellator 58 skyrocketed to 269,000 viewers on the wings of Michael Chandler's electrifying brawl with Eddie Alvarez.
Ratings for Bellator Fighting Championships dropped for a second straight week.
Facing erratic event ratings on a weekly basis, Bellator chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney opened the door for a shift away from Saturday nights for the promotion's sixth season.
In February, Bellator, the consensus #2 mixed martial arts promotion in North America, signed a three-year deal with MTV2 to air live events. Understandably, fans following the promotion became giddy with excitement. No longer would they have to wait for tape-delayed broadcasts or other fans in different markets to upload the events to the Internet.
