In the midst of the NCAA men?s basketball tournament, ESPN?s latest Top Rank Boxing card failed to average 500,000 viewers for the entire telecast.
According to Showbuzz Daily, the March 23 Top Rank on ESPN broadcast from Costa Mesa, California averaged 469,000 viewers. In the ratings, the telecast drew a 0.12 rating in the 18-49 demographic, good for 64th on cable for the day.
The two-fight telecast was headlined by a heavyweight bout between once-beaten contender Kubrat Pulev taking on Bogdan Dinu. Pulev suffered a cut above his left eye early in the bout, but eventually battled back and knocked out Dinu in the seventh round to keep his win streak alive. Pulev is currently the mandatory challenger to the IBF title being held by unified champion Anthony Joshua, who is defending his titles against Jarrell Miller in June.
The opening fight of the televised portion of the card was a featherweight bout between Jessie Magdaleno and Rico Ramos for the WBC USNBC title. Magdaleno dominated the fight, winning a unanimous decision over the course of 10 rounds.
The ESPN broadcast had to contend with games from the NCAA men?s basketball tournament on multiple networks. The Top Rank card aired at the same time as the Auburn vs. Kansas game on TBS, which was the most-watched game for the day, averaging 4.622 million viewers.
ESPN?s next Top Rank broadcast will take place on March 30 in Philadelphia. The main event of that card is Oleksandr Gvozdyk vs. Doudou Ngumbu for the WBC light heavyweight title.