The broadcast co-headlined by Swede Alexander Gustafsson last weekend was a huge success. The UFC on Fox 5 broadcast card peaked with 5.7 million viewers in the USA, where the fight was shown live on one of the USA’s most popular TV stations FOX.
According to the official press release, the main card broadcast averaged 4.4 million viewers. The viewership figure tops the UFC’s previous two efforts events on fox, which had only 2.4 million viewers. The first two cards on FOX were the biggest to date with an average in the debut of 5.7 million viewers, and 4.7 for the sophomore event. The release of international viewers was not distributed, however with stars like BJ Penn and the title fight between Nate Diaz and Benson Henderson, plus Europeans Denis Siver and Alexander Gustafsson, it is expected that the event was also popular internationally.
Gustafsson’s high-profile victory over the former Pride Grand Prix and UFC champion Mauricio Rua moved him closer to a title shot and a household name with MMA fans. At 6 wins and 1 loss in the UFC, the Mauler is on the edge of a battle with current champion Jon Jones or challenger Chael Sonnen.
Swede Magnus Cedenblad and Norwegian Simeon Thoresen will be on the card of the next FOX network television card where Demetrious Johnson defends his flyweight title against John Dodson in Chicago for the main event in January. Although the Nordic fighters aren’t on the main card, a quick finish for their fights, plus some free time on the main card due to quick finishes could get them a little time on FOX.
