MMA fans were treated to a pair of big events last week in the form of Bellator 233 and UFC Fight Night Moscow, with the Bellator event being the only one to air on broadcast television, as the UFC card was streamed live on ESPN+.
Bellator 233, which was headlined by John Salter defeating Costello Van Steenis, brought in an average of 314,000 viewers according to MMA Fighting. Other bouts on the main card saw Andrew Kapel defeat King Mo, Arlene Blencowe defeat Leslie Smith and Tyrell Fortune defeat Azunna Anyanwu. The show was a big one for King Mo, who despite losing to Kapel by first round knockout, retired from professional MMA competition.
Competition was at a premium for Bellator 233, with WWE Smackdown on Fox, an NBA Basketball game on ESPN, NCAA Football on ESPN 2 and NCAA Football on Fox Sports 1.
Up next for Bellator MMA is Bellator 234, which airs via tape delay on Friday Night and is headlined by a bout pitting Sergei Kharitonov against Linton Vassell. The UFC returns this weekend with UFC Fight Night Sao Paulo, which is headlined by Jan Blachowicz and Ronaldo Souza and that streams live on ESPN+.
