TORONTO - After making a big splash in its Toronto debut last April, the UFC is set to make its return to the city later this year.
UFC Canada president Tom Wright has confirmed that UFC 140 will be held at Air Canada Centre on Dec. 10.
"On a per capita basis, there isn't a stronger market for mixed martial arts or the UFC in the world," Wright said Wednesday in a phone interview with The Canadian Press.
A UFC-record 55,724 fans packed Rogers Centre last April for UFC 129. Welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre won a unanimous decision over Jake Shields in the main event.
"I think the ACC made more sense for this second show," Wright said. "Partly because we didn't have visibility in terms of exactly what the card is going to look like.
"I think we will have another stadium show in the future. A second one maybe back in Toronto or it might be in New York, it might be in Dallas, it might be somewhere else."
Air Canada Centre is home to the NHL's Toronto Maple Leafs and the NBA's Toronto Raptors. The arena has a capacity of about 19,000.
"Without a doubt, Toronto will become a regular stop on the UFC pay-per-view annual schedule," Wright said. "Once we've been able to have a show both at the Rogers Centre and at the Air Canada Centre, we'll be able to have some different alternatives for our fans going forward."
Ticket information and card information is expected to be announced in the coming weeks.
UFC 140 will be the eighth show in Canada. Vancouver and Montreal have also previously hosted events.
The next card on the schedule is UFC 133 on Saturday night in Philadelphia. Rashad Evans will face Tito Ortiz in the main event.
