Bellator 204: “Caldwell vs. Lahat” took place at Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D., on Aug. 17, 2018, airing live on Paramount Network. It was an explosive night of action as only three out of 13 fights went the distance, with 75 percent of the main card fights being finishes, including a spectacular knockout of Conor McGregor’s teammate, James Gallagher.
While the crowd in the building was as loud as any venue you’ve ever heard, particularly when fighters from South Dakota (David Michaud, Logan Storley, Bryce Logan) were in the cage, the television audience was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Jed I. Goodman on Twitter breaks down the television numbers:
#Bellator204 on Paramount Network averaged 319k viewers
A look at all 2018 #Bellator events. pic.twitter.com/elbjCb8SFM
— Jed I. Goodman (@jedigoodman) August 20, 2018
As you can see from the 2018 breakdown, 319,000 viewers is not a good look for this card. It exceeds the previous low set by a tape-delayed Bellator 203 card (391,000 viewers) and would rank below any show in 2018 for viewers on Paramount Network save for a lackluster “Chandler vs. Girtz”-led line-up that did 242,000 on the former Spike TV. Thanks to a simulcast on CMT that night it exceeds both Bellator 203 and Bellator 204, finishing at a combined 403,000 viewers.
As veteran mixed martial arts (MMA) writer Damon Martin put it, this makes the new relationship with DAZN an interesting one to follow going forward.
Bellator ratings from Friday. Will be interesting to see what happens to the viewership once they are splitting time with DAZN and Paramount Network. https://t.co/u3CPQ2fQB5
— Damon Martin (@DamonMartin) August 20, 2018
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