Prior to Saturday’s broadcast, the promotion had failed to garner at least 200,000 viewers for three consecutive weeks. Bellator 40 was the second-highest rated broadcast of Season 4, sitting just below Bellator 36, which earned 230,000 viewers.
Bellator 40 began at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT, one hour prior to Strikeforce’s “Diaz vs. Daley” on Showtime. An immediate replay of Bellator 40 netted 190,000 viewers, MTV told Sherdog.com.
Headlined by a non-title bout which saw welterweight champion Ben Askren decision veteran Nick Thompson, Bellator 40 emanated from the First Council Casino in Newkirk, Okla. The April 9 event also featured the remaining 155- and 170-pound tournament semifinals, as lightweight Michael Chandler bested Lloyd Woodard and welterweight Jay Hieron outpointed Brent Weedman. Chandler and Hieron will move on to face Patricky “Pitbull” Freire and Rick Hawn in their respective tournament finals.