UFC 140 Prelims Draw 808,000 Viewers on Ion TV

Sherdog.com confirmed the viewership figure Tuesday with an industry source, who also revealed that the broadcast earned ratings of 0.55 in the Male 18-34 and 18-49 demographics. Of the three UFC prelim broadcasts to air on Ion TV in 2011, UFC 140 ranks in the middle, beating out UFC 127 (714,000 viewers) but falling short of UFC 125 (829,000 viewers).

The Ion telecast, which preceded the event’s pay-per-view portion, featured four undercard contests. Yves Jabouin edged out Walel Watson in an entertaining bantamweight decision, while veteran Dennis Hallman made quick work of striker John Makdessi in what was supposed to be Hallman’s return to the lightweight division. Due to Hallman’s troubles making the 155-pound limit, the bout was instead contested at a 158.5-pound catch-weight.

The Ion broadcast also showcased a brutal knockout by middleweight Constantinos Philippou, who blasted opponent Jared Hamman in 3:11. Rounding out the prelims was another quick finish, with Igor Pokrajac demolishing Krzysztof Soszynski just 35 seconds into their light heavyweight affair.

Headlined by an impressive 205-pound title defense by Jon Jones over Lyoto Machida, UFC 140 emanated from the Air Canada Centre in Toronto. In addition to Jones’ technical submission win over Machida, the event also saw heavyweight Frank Mir break Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira’s arm with a kimura in the co-main event.