UFC Officially Announces First Event In Toronto For April 2011

The UFC is officially coming to Toronto as of Tuesday. UFC president Dana White announced the promotion’s first event for Canada’s largest city on April 30, 2011.

White made the announcement during a fan event in Toronto, where he also made official the first ever UFC Fan Expo that will hit Canada’s Direct Energy Center on April 29 and 30.

The UFC has long sought to promote a show in Toronto, but it wasn’t until earlier this year that the province of Ontario finally sanctioned the sport of MMA to take place there.

White along with UFC owner Lorenzo Fertitta and vice president Marc Ratner have been working on getting sanctioning done in Ontario for years. Earlier in 2010 the UFC opened an office in Toronto as well.

The hard work paid off and now Toronto will likely end up with one of the biggest shows for all of 2011. The Rogers Centre, which plays host to Major League Baseball’s Toronto Blue Jays, will be the home for the UFC in April.

White stopped short of announcing any fights, but it’s been rumored several times that Canadian star Georges St-Pierre would be a leading candidate to headline the show. First things first, St-Pierre has to get past Josh Koscheck this weekend at UFC 124 in Montreal.

Expect more information including fight announcements to start dribbling out over the next several weeks as Toronto celebrates the news that they will finally get a UFC event.