Source: ‘Fedor vs. Henderson’ Earns 571,000 Viewers on Showtime

Sherdog.com confirmed the viewership numbers with an industry source Tuesday following an initial report from MMAJunkie.com. The broadcast also earned a 1.7 household rating.

Headlined by the titular heavyweight confrontation between former Pride Fighting Championships king Fedor Emelianenko and reigning Strikeforce 205-pound champion Dan Henderson, the event was held July 30 at the Sears Centre in the Chicago suburb of Hoffman Estates, Ill. After a wild start, Henderson knocked out the heavier Russian with a well-placed uppercut during a scramble near the end of round one.

The event also featured a title change, as Miesha Tate snatched away the Strikeforce women’s 135-pound belt from around the waist of Marloes Coenen via fourth-round arm-triangle choke. Additionally, Tim Kennedy took one step closer to another shot at Strikeforce’s middleweight championship, as he outpointed fellow contender Robbie Lawler on all three judges’ scorecards.

Strikeforce’s most-watched effort on Showtime came in February, when Emelianenko was defeated by Antonio Silva in the quarterfinals of the Strikeforce heavyweight grand prix. That event, which took place at the Izod Center in East Rutherford, N.J., earned 741,000 viewers.