Report: UFC 207 nets estimated 1.1M PPV buys

Over a million viewers tuned in for the return of Ronda Rousey, according to a report from Dave Meltzer of MMA Fighting.

More than a year away from competition apparently did little to harm Rousey's drawing power as the returns for UFC 207 are estimated to be around 1.1 million PPV buys. The main event saw women's bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes obliterate Rousey via 48-second knockout.

The PPV buy number is in line with Rousey's previous appearance at UFC 193 last November, a knockout loss to Holly Holm that drew an estimated 1.1 million buys. That setback caused Rousey to withdraw from speaking to the media for most of 2016, a stretch of behavior that extended to the days prior to UFC 207. During fight week, Rousey refused to do interviews, which suggests that the buyrate could have been even higher if she took an active hand in the promotion.

This is the second straight PPV headlined by Nunes to draw over one million buys. In July, Nunes defeated Miesha Tate in the main event of UFC 200 to win the women's bantamweight title. That event was bolstered by a major promotional push from the UFC as well as the return of Brock Lesnar. The card also featured a bevy of stars including Daniel Cormier, Anderson Silva, Jose Aldo, and Cain Velasquez.

Nunes was also on the main card of UFC 196, an event that drew an estimated 1.5 million buys, though she was merely the opener for a broadcast that featured the first Conor McGregor-Nate Diaz bout in the main event and a title fight between Holm and Tate.

UFC 207's buyrate was aided by a 135-pound championship co-main event between Dominick Cruz and Cody Garbrandt, as well as a potential No. 1 contender's bout between TJ Dillashaw and John Lineker. It was the fifth UFC PPV to crack the seven-figure buy mark in 2016.