UFC® Sells Out Rogers Centre in Minutes

TORONTO, Feb. 12, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The Ultimate Fighting Championship® announced today that tickets for UFC® 129: ST-PIERRE vs. SHIELDS at Rogers Centre in Toronto on April 30 sold out minutes after being made available to the public. Rogers Centre was originally configured for 42,000 seats, but due to overwhelming demand, UFC and Rogers Centre officials reconfigured the venue to accommodate 55,000.

UFC® 129: ST-PIERRE vs. SHIELDS, which is presented by TapouT®, is the first major mixed martial arts event to ever be held in Ontario. The event doubles the largest gate and attendance records in UFC history. The previous gate record for a UFC event was $5.4 million, which was set on Saturday, Dec. 30, 2006 at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas for UFC 66: LIDDELL vs. ORTIZ 2. UFC 124: ST-PIERRE vs. KOSCHECK 2, held at the Bell Centre in Montreal on Dec. 11, 2010, previously held the attendance record with over 23,000 fans.

With two UFC records already shattered, UFC 129 is also the largest single-day event gate in the history of Rogers Centre, which has played home to some of the world's top entertainment and sporting events.

"UFC continues to set new milestones," UFC President Dana White said. "We've sold 55,000 tickets in our first stadium event in Toronto and we continue to take the UFC to the next level."

"Based on the lightning quick sell-out, there is no doubt that UFC's fan base is extremely passionate," said Silvio D'Addario, VP Events, Rogers Centre.  "We've worked closely with UFC to configure our venue to provide the best fan experience possible and we look forward to hosting this historic event."

While UFC 129 is sold out, tickets for the UFC® Fan Expo at the Direct Energy Centre in Toronto on April 29-30 are still available at www.ufcfanexpo.com. Featuring the largest collection of UFC® fighters ever to appear in one location, exciting special events, interactive Q&A sessions, meet and greets, training and development sessions, the Octagon®, and much more, the UFC Fan Expo is a can't-miss event for UFC fans.

For more information, or current UFC fight news, visit UFC.com. All bouts live and subject to change.

Ultimate Fighting Championship® - www.ufc.com

Owned and operated by Zuffa, LLC, and headquartered in Las Vegas, Nev., UFC® produces over 12 UFC live Pay-Per-View events annually and 30 live arena events around the world.  UFC programming is distributed in the United States on Viacom, Inc.'s Spike TV and on Comcast, Inc.'s VERSUS network.  UFC content is distributed commercially through Joe Hand Promotions in the U.S. and Canadastar in Canada. Globally, UFC programming is broadcast in over 145 countries and territories, reaching 354 million homes worldwide, in 19 different languages.  Ancillary businesses now include UFC.com with over 5 million unique visitors per month, the best-selling UFC "Undisputed" videogame franchise distributed by THQ, UFC Gym™, UFC Fight Club affinity program, UFC Fan Expo™ festivals, branded apparel, trading cards, articulated action figures and other media including best-selling DVDs and a U.S. bimonthly magazine.

Ultimate Fighting Championship®, Ultimate Fighting®, UFC®, The Ultimate Fighter®, Submission®, As Real As It Gets®, Zuffa®, The Octagon™ and the eight-sided competition mat and cage design are registered trademarks, registered service marks, trademarks, trade dress and/or service marks owned exclusively by Zuffa, LLC and licensed to its affiliated entities and other licensees in the United States and other jurisdictions. All other marks referenced herein may be the property of Zuffa, LLC, its affiliates or other respective owners.

SOURCE UFC