Vancouver, BC will finally get their long-awaited return from the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
Rumor: UFC planning return to Vancouver in June
According to numerous sources, the UFC is planning an event at Rogers Arena in Vancouver on June 14.
This will mark the third time the company has made the trip to the west coast of Canada.
June 12, 2010 the UFC made their first appearance in Vancouver and it was very successful. Headlining the card was a light heavyweight bout between Chuck Liddell and Rich Franklin, which marked the final time fans saw “The Iceman” enter the Octagon. Also on that card was a back and forth battle in the heavyweight division with Mirko Cro Cop surprisingly submitting Pat Barry. Kicking things off on the main card was local talent Rory MacDonald, who dominated through two rounds, but fell short at the last second to Carlos Condit.
UFC 115 officially drew 17,669 in attendance for a $4.2 million live gate.
Almost exactly to the date, the organization returned on June 10, 2011 for UFC 131. The TUF 13 coaches, Brock Lesnar and Junior dos Santos were expected to do battle in the main event, however Lesnar was forced to pull out due to an illness and stepping in for him was Shane Carwin. The fight was a bloody three-round war, with Dos Santos picking up the judges nod — and ultimately retiring Carwin. Kenny Florian made his featherweight debut against Diego Nunes in the co-main event and earned himself a title shot against Jose Aldo with a unanimous decision victory.
UFC 131 was down from the attendance one year prior, scoring 14,685 through the doors for a $2.8 million gate.
While the UFC has not yet made the event official, our sources are saying the announcement could come as early as this week.
Actually Cro Cop subbed Barry, as surprising as it was.