Toronto to host UFC 131 in spring

Between the Jays, Rays and Tigers, there will be cage fighters come April at the Rogers Centre.

And perhaps a record crowd for mixed martial arts in North America.

The UFC plans a historic splashdown in Ontario, skipping Toronto's Air Canada Centre for something a little roomier. UFC 131 is set for the Rogers Centre on April 30 with expectations of a world record gate for MMA.

"Finally," UFC president Dana White said of the Ontario date. "People have been dying for this thing in Toronto and now we're finally coming," he added. "We expect it to be massive."

The Toronto event comes a little more than 10 years and 99 major shows since White and the Fertitta brothers bought the ailing UFC for $2 million US in January 2001. Their first show was UFC 32: Showdown In The Meadowlands.

The Toronto gate alone will likely be more than triple that purchase price.

"Throughout my career, over the last 10 years there's some memorable events," White said. "I have the feeling that this one will be the most memorable event of my career."

White made the announcement at a news conference Tuesday at the Air Canada Centre — more than three weeks before the provincial government's Jan. 1 date to begin accepting applications from MMA promoters.

'Ready to go'

"I can assure you that our application will be on that table [Jan. 1] and I like our chances to be accepted," said Tom Wright, the UFC's director of Canadian operations.

"I don't think there's any secret that we've been ready to run on this thing for a long time, ready to go," added White.

A spokeswoman for Ontario's Ministry of Consumer Services did not immediately respond to a query about the UFC announcing the show before submitting an application.

The UFC has long planned an outdoor stadium show, kicking it up a notch from the average hockey or basketball arena. Aloha Stadium in Honolulu was originally targeted but some taxation red tape got in the way.

Toronto instead will get to put up the big numbers.

How big remains a question mark at this stage. Neither White not Wright offered details on setup for the show.

"The live event means everything to me," White said. "We'll deliver. We will deliver and make sure that it has the same energy — you're not watching two little ants fight on a matchbox. I'll make sure we deliver. I promise."

Wright said the UFC has visited the venue several times already, noting there are different ways to configure the Rogers Centre.

Variety of fighting styles

WrestleMania X8 attracted 68,237 in March 2002 to the then-SkyDome. Bands like AC/DC have drawn crowds of 45,000.

Mixed martial arts combines a variety of fighting styles from boxing and kickboxing to jiu-jitsu and wrestling. While it was once contested virtually without rules, it is now sanctioned in most North American jurisdictions by the same athletic commissions that govern boxing.

Canada has already broken UFC records and more are expected to topple this weekend.

UFC 124, scheduled for Saturday in Montreal's Bell Centre, is expected to exceed 23,000 fans.

The weekend show is also expected to erase the previous record gate of $5,397,300 set at UFC 66 in December 2006 for the Las rematch between Chuck (The Iceman) Liddell and Tito (The Huntington Beach Bad Boy) Ortiz.

A record gate is good for the Ontario government, which like other jurisdictions will get a piece of the pie — reportedly five per cent.

UFC 83 attendance in April 2008 was 20,011, which broke the record of 19,049, set at UFC 68 on March 3, 2007, at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio.

At the time, UFC 83 was also the UFC's fastest sellout — and online ticket sales indicated that 42 per cent of buyers came from Ontario.

Companion Fan Expo

White and Wright offered no details on the Toronto card or tickets, other than to say stay tuned. There will be a companion Fan Expo April 29-30 at the Direct Energy Centre.

Rogers Communications, which owns the Rogers Centre, is a big backer of MMA and spoke out in favour of its sanctioning in Ontario.

The UFC is Rogers' marquee pay-per-view product, surpassing boxing and wrestling, via Viewers Choice, which Rogers owns a share of.

MMA is showcased on Rogers Sportsnet and via Rogers on Demand. It is also part of Rogers' mobile plans.

Within hours of the announcement, a few fighters had already contacted UFC matchmaker Joe Silva about getting on the card. But with the Toronto event more than five months away, most would expect to have to get through a fight first.

That includes Canadian star Georges St-Pierre, who defends his welterweight title on Saturday in his hometown of Montreal against American Josh Koscheck.

The UFC, while publicly downplaying the need to have GSP headline the Toronto card, would want to have its Canadian ace in the hole atop the marquee for a blockbuster event north of the border.

Asked about Toronto, St-Pierre's camp said they were not looking past Koscheck but wouldn't rule it out if approached. Much will depend on the Canadian's health if he wins.

6th Canadian UFC show

Whoever gets to keep the belt Saturday night will take on Jake Shields next.

The Rogers Centre event will be Canada's sixth UFC show, following UFC 83, 97, 113 and UFC 124 in Montreal, and UFC 115 in Vancouver.

"We're going to be coming to Canada for a long time and doing a lot of different events in a lot of different places," said White.

Wright said the UFC plans to come back to Canada "at least three times a year" with one of those dates an annual one, just as the UFC traditionally holds shows in Vegas around New Year's, the Super Bowl, July 4 and Memorial Day.

He said news of the next Vancouver show will come in early 2011.

"But a date hasn't been set because we still have some work to do with the city there." 

White, who often sings the praises of Canadian MMA fans, delivered news of the Toronto event somewhat out of the blue — midway through Tuesday's news conference.

"You name the place that we've done an event, there are people from Canada there. It's incredible," he said. "So to be here today to be announcing that we're coming finally to Toronto, this is a big day for us."

'One of the best days'

The news was welcome for Toronto welterweight Claude Patrick, who has won both of his UFC bouts to date.

"Oh man, one of the best days I have had in a long time," he said.

Mark (The Machine) Hominick of Thamesford, Ont., who has fought in both the UFC and WEC, could figure on the Toronto card in the UFC's new featherweight division.

If he wins a scheduled Jan. 22 fight against George Roop, he could be in the mix for a title bout at 145 pounds that would be an attractive bout in Toronto.

Featherweight champion Jose Aldo's slated Jan. 1 title defence against Josh Grispi has been delayed because of an injury to Aldo.

Grispi is due to fight Dustin Poirier on Jan. 1 at UFC 125 and Hominick hopes Aldo's next opponent will come down to who performs better — Grispi or him — in January.

Hominick's wife is due to give birth May 4, just days after the Toronto show. 

"We'll just have to deal with it as it comes," Hominick said.