Bellator 244 Attracts Promotion’s Smallest Audience of 2020 to Paramount Network

Despite having a light heavyweight title tilt at the top of the bill, Bellator 244 was not a ratings success for the California-based promotion.

According to ShowBuzz Daily, Friday’s main card averaged just 275,000 viewers on Paramount Network — the lowest of five cards held in 2020 by Bellator. The event was simulcast on Dazn, but viewership figures for the paid streaming service are not released.

Bellator 244 took place at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut, and was headlined by a 205-pound championship clash between Vadim Nemkov and Ryan Bader. Nemkov claimed the light heavyweight throne with a second-round knockout of the former UFC standout, while former women’s featherweight queen Julia Budd earned a dominant three-round verdict over Jessy Miele in the co-main event.

The previous low for a Bellator card came on July 24, when Bellator 242 “Pettis vs. Bandejas” averaged 277,000 viewers on Paramount Network. Just two weeks prior, however, a Bellator 243 lineup topped by Michael Chandler vs. Benson Henderson attracted an audience of 403,000 — the best so far for the promotion this year.

Bellator 244 finished 79th of the top 150 programs televised on cable this past Friday, drawing a .09 in the 18-to-49-year-old demographic. The Scott Coker-led organization will return with back-to-back events on Sept. 11 and Sept. 12.