CM Punk

CM Punk walks to the octagon before a welterweight bout at UFC 203 on Saturday, Sept. 10, 2016, in Cleveland.

(David Dermer)

CLEVELAND, Ohio - Former WWE superstar CM Punk may have gotten annihilated during his MMA debut at UFC 203 on Saturday. But it looks like his presence meant big numbers for the pay-per-view buy rates.

Marc Raimondi, assistant editor for MMA Fighting reports the term "UFC 203" was searched more than 1.2 million times on Google the day of the fight. Raimondi also estimates UFC 203, which took place inside The Q, could have drawn upwards of 700,000 pay-per-view buys.

UFC 203 will likely have the most PPV buys by a card w/o McGregor, Rousey or Lesnar since UFC 183. Maybe since UFC 182. — Marc Raimondi (@marc_raimondi) September 11, 2016

Official numbers should roll out in the coming weeks. If Raimondi's assessment is correct, that would mark the biggest buy-rate for any PPV not featuring megastars Ronda Rousey, Conor McGregor or Brock Lesnar since UFC 182 in 2015.

If you add Jon Jones to that list of stars, it would be the highest buy-rate since UFC 168 in 2013.

That would equal a huge success for both the UFC and Cleveland-native Stipe Miocic. While most mainstream eyes were fixated on CM Punk Saturday, Miocic will reap the benefits.

The UFC Heavyweight Champion delivered, arguably, the best performance of the night, KO'ing MMA legend Alistair Overeem. The win could position Miocic as the UFC's next big star, especially with uncertainty surrounding Jones, Rousey and Lesnar's future prospects.

The fight will also prove financially lucrative for Miocic. While salaries have yet to be revealed for the event, Miocic earned a $40,000 payout as part of the UFC's Reebok sponsorship.

When it's all said and done, Miocic could earn more than $300,000 in salary and bonuses alone (and that doesn't take into account his personal sponsorships).