Vancouver votes for two-year MMA regulatory trial, June UFC event now likely

The Ultimate Fighting Championship's long-anticipated Vancouver event today got a green light.

As expected, the Vancouver City Council today voted in favor of a two-year trial for mixed martial arts in the city.

UFC president Dana White has long hinted at the possibility of a show in Vancouver, and during this past weekend's UFC 107 event, said a June event would be likely if regulation was adopted.

The UFC had a presence at today's hearing with company executives Lawrence Epstein and Michael Mersch in attendance. UFC Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Marc Ratner, the former head of the Nevada State Athletic Commission, confirmed with MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) on Wednesday that he wouldn't be in attendance. However, he penned an op-ed in the Vancouver Sun earlier this year in which he made a case for legislation and debunked many of the sport's myths.

Although the Vancouver Athletic Commission issued an MMA ban in 2007, the city recently did a trial regulatory run with two amateurs events. No problems were reported, which helped strengthen today's case for the pro-MMA contingent. Gym and bar owners, instructors, law-enforcement officials and others all spoke at today's hearing.

Ratner and other UFC executives (and even fighters) have supported legislation that recently opened many new markets for MMA and the UFC. Massachusetts recently became the 42nd U.S. state to adopt MMA regulation and opened the door for a likely summer UFC event in Boston.

Vancouver, though, could prove to be one of the UFC's most lucrative new markets. The city, with a metro area that includes 2.2 million residents, is home to General Motors Place, a 20,000-seat venue that's expected to host the UFC's June event. The city also has a strong MMA fan base.

The UFC has ventured to Canada just twice before, though the promotion didn't make the trek until 2008. However, both shows took place at Montreal's Bell Centre and proved successful. UFC 83 in April 2008 set a UFC attendance record with 21,390 spectators, who created a $5.1 million gate. The UFC returned this year for UFC 97, which broke the attendance record (21,451) and produced a $4.9 million gate.