UFC 115 is sure looking like it's causing more trouble than it's worth.
Literally.
After months of jumping through hoops in trying to bring the UFC to Vancouver, it may very well be that Dana White and the Fertittas wish they never had.
The Director of the Greater Vancouver Regional District Board, Kerry Jang, tells the Toronto Sun that it is highly likely that the the UFC's first trip to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada may also be its last.
"The city has been backed into a corner. We have no choice but to demand high insurance, because we're not protected by the province like Montreal is. We've done everything we can to support MMA in the city. I think it's fair to say [that the UFC won't be coming back to Vancouver]. If the UFC wants to come back, they should be working with the provincial and federal governments."
The issue at hand, as has been reported for months now, is insurance costs. Vancouver Athletic Commission chair Mirko (coincidentally enough) Mladenovic said that the price of insurance is so high that the UFC, despite selling out General Motors Place for the event, will most assuredly make no money.
Rumors have swirled that the UFC had to pay in the neighborhood of $12 million to insure UFC 115. But with Zuffa's recent move of opening up corporate offices in Canada, one would think that this situation sits high atop their list of priorities along with the sanctioning of the sport in Toronto.
So, Mr. Tom Wright, the pressure is on. Don't make Western Canadian UFC fans have to wait for a Seattle, Washington event. Thousands of Canucks are counting on you.
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