The UFC's debut on the Versus network can officially be considered a success thanks to the 1.24 million viewers who tuned in to see "Vera vs. Jones" among others from the 1STBANK Center in Broomfield, Colorado, last Sunday night (March 21).
John Ourand of the Sports Business Journal tweeted the numbers earlier today.
The event was responsible for a 1.66 rating in the coveted demographic of males 18-34. Those numbers are likely the reason the cable television network and DirecTV recently settled their longstanding feud.
The UFC is contracted to hold a second "UFC on Versus" event later this year, tentatively scheduled for August 1 in Oakland. That event joins Zuffa's remaining WEC televised cards already in place.
By comparison, January's broadcast of UFC Fight Night 20 on Spike TV earned an audience of 1.7 million viewers -- but Spike TV is available in roughly 25 million more homes than Versus.
UFC on Versus saw the continued rise of Jon Jones, as he obliterated venerable striker Brandon Vera in the main event. Joining his ascension was heavyweight super-slugger Junior dos Santos after "Cigano" stopped Gabriel Gonzaga in the first round.
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