Opposite the NBA Playoffs and a 20-inning baseball game on FOX, CBS struggled with its Strikeforce telecast on Saturday.
The fifth edition of CBS Saturday Night Fights drew a 1.8/3 final rating and 2.9 million viewers on Saturday night, down 28% in ratings and 29% in viewership from the most recent edition in November (2.5, 4.0 mil).
This marks the second-lowest rated, second-least viewed mixed martial arts telecast on CBS, ahead of only a July ’08 EliteXC telecast (1.7/4, 2.6 mil).
Saturday’s telecast drew a 1.1/4 rating among adults 18-49, down 39% from November’s telecast (1.8/6). Ratings were also down 43% among men 18-34 (1.3), down 40% among men 18-49 (1.5) and down 31% among men 25-54 (1.8).
By comparison, Heat/Celtics Game 1 drew a 2.5 rating (1.6 among adults 18-49) and 3.8 million viewers on ESPN Saturday night, and the tail end of the Mets’ 20-inning win over the Cardinals drew a 2.4 rating on FOX from 9-11:13 PM.
