UFC Fight Night 17 Breaking Spike TV Viewing Records.

Spike TV’s live “UFC Fight Night” in Tampa, FL, the first UFC card in the city’s history, served as a showcase for some of mixed martial arts’ rising stars, and garnered strong ratings in the process. UFC Fight Night on Spike TV ranked #1 in Men 18-49 and Men 18-34 among ad-supported cable for its time period.

The card, which featured Joe Lauzon submitting Jeremy Stephens via armbar in the main event, affirming his spot as a top contender in the lightweight division, drew an average audience of 1.7 million viewers. Overall, the telecast, which emanated LIVE from the USF Sun Dome peaked with a 2.00 rating in M 18-34 and a 1.51 household rating for an average of 2 million viewers during the 10:30 – 10:45 PM quarter hour, which featured the main event.

Overall, the Spike telecast reached 1.7 million people with a 1.60 rating Men 18-34 (462,000 viewers), a 1.55 rating in Men 18-49 (869,000 viewers), and a 1.3 HH rating. It bested huge college basketball matchups on Saturday in key demographics, including ESPN’s men’s college basketball telecasts of Indiana against Michigan State, as well as UConn’s showdown with Michigan.

Versus the same time period from a year ago, UFC Fight Night was up triple digits in key demographics; +319% in Men 18-49, +203% in Persons 18-49, +214% in Men 18-34, and +152% among average audience.