UFC Vegas 26 comes in at No. 1 in Saturday ratings as Marina Rodriguez shines

UFC Vegas 26 drew in the best TV ratings on May 8.

No. 6 ranked 115-pound strawweight contender Marina Rodriguez was later than usual for a typical trip to Las Vegas last week. After TJ Dillashaw was forced out of his highly-anticipated return bout against Cory Sandhagen, the promotion turned to make another top 10 fight.

As a result, UFC Vegas 26 wound up with Michelle Waterson, No. 9, as Rodriguez’s dance partner. Competing at the 125-pound flyweight limit due to the short notice, the pair went to battle for five rounds that saw Rodriguez majorly get the better of her opponent. The unanimous decision win improved her already impressive record to an even finer 14-1-2.

PhotoCred: MMA Mania

The 34-year old striking sensation slid into her first UFC main event after a massive second-round knockout over Amanda Ribas at UFC 257 in January. According to MMA Fighting, UFC Vegas 26 averaged 741,000 viewers which makes it the second most viewed UFC on ESPN TV event of the year. As for this past Saturday specifically, the event stood tall as No. 1 in the ratings scoring a .23 in the 18-49 year old demographic.

• UFC Fight Island 8: Michael Chiesa vs. Neil Magny – 244K (Wednesday 12pmET)
• UFC Vegas 22: Derek Brunson vs. Kevin Holland – 721K (Saturday, 10pmET)
• UFC Vegas 24: Robert Whittaker vs. Kelvin Gastelum – 953K (Saturday, 10pmET)
• UFC Vegas 25: Dominick Reyes vs. Jiri Prochazka – 538K (Saturday, 10pmET on ESPN2)
• UFC Vegas 26: Marina Rodriguez vs. Michelle Waterson – 741K (Saturday, 8pmET on ESPN)

In the co-main event of UFC Vegas 26, Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone also took on a fighter who came in on short notice. Unfortunately for him, Alex Morono—who replaced Diego Sanchez—would go on to put Cerrone away with strikes late in round one.