Strikeforce ‘Melendez vs. Masvidal’ Draws 460K Viewers on Showtime

Strikeforce earned an average of 460,000 viewers for its live Saturday broadcast of “Melendez vs. Masvidal” on Showtime.

Sherdog.com on Tuesday confirmed the figure with an industry source, who also revealed that the program earned a 1.35 household rating.

Headlined by a lightweight title bout between champion Gilbert Melendez and Jorge Masvidal, the Dec. 17 event emanated from the Valley View Casino Center in San Diego, Calif. Melendez retained his 155-pound strap, outpointing his scrappy challenger en route to a unanimous decision victory.

Preceded by the finals of Showtime’s Super Six World Boxing Classic, which earned an average of 495,000 viewers and a household rating of 1.43, the show also featured the return of women’s 145-pound champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos.

Santos showed no signs of ring rust after contract negotiations with Strikeforce kept her out of the cage for 18 months, as the consensus No. 1 female on the planet knocked out challenger Hiroko Yamanaka in just 16 seconds.

Strikeforce’s ratings peak on Showtime occurred in February, when an average of 741,000 viewers tuned in to see Antonio Silva knock off Fedor Emelianenko in the quarterfinals of the promotion’s heavyweight grand prix. The Zuffa-owned organization will continue to broadcast on Showtime in 2012, kicking off the new year on Jan. 7 with “Rockhold vs. Jardine” at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.