UFC 258 prelims drop significantly in ratings compared to UFC 257

UFC 258 has come and gone. It was the second pay-per-view event of the year and in many ways, the smaller event compared to UFC 257.

As the first big event of 2021, UFC 257 was headlined by the highly anticipated rematch between Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor. UFC 258 acted as a follow-up with the welterweight title showdown between reigning champ Kamaru Usman and former teammate Gilbert Burns taking center stage.

For the most recent event, the preliminary portion of fights’ numbers were solid — just not as solid as its predecessor’s.

Per the Neilsen Ratings System via MMA Fighting, UFC 258 went into the main card with a height of 794,000 viewers for the two-hour four-fight televised prelims. The featured bout was a middleweight clash between undefeated BJJ sensation Rodolfo Vieira and Anthony Hernandez. In an incredible upset fashion, “Fluffy” Hernandez weathered the grappler’s early storm to rally and pummel his into an eventual second-round guillotine victory.

UFC 257, on the other hand, was topped off by a dominant showing from the young Arman Tsarukyan who picked up a unanimous decision over Matt Frevola. The event’s prelims averaged 1.433 million viewers.

Circling back to UFC 258, it earned a .28 rating in the 18-49 year old demographic. Landing it at No. 13 overall on cable that day.

Following the UFC 258 prelims on ESPN was Top Rank boxing which peaked at an average of 584,000. Despite the big difference from event to event, UFC 258’s numbers were still better than the last four PPV events of 2020.

In the end, those who watched both cards all the way through saw excellent performances from Poirier and Usman. The latter of which secured a third-round TKO to defend his title successfully for the third time while the former knocked out McGregor in just the second round.

The next big event will be UFC 259 on March 6 where three titles will be on the line.