The rumors can finally be put to rest as the Ultimate Fighting Championship has officially announced the UFC 118 event that will take place at the TD Garden in Boston, MA on August 28th with the main event and co-main event also being confirmed by promotion officials.
The top bout of the evening will see new UFC Lightweight Champion Frank "The Answer" Edgar defend against the man he took the title from, "The Prodigy" BJ Penn, while a Light Heavyweight bout between UFC Hall of Famer Randy "The Natural" Couture and boxing legend James Toney will serve as the co-feature.
The weekend will also include the first UFC Fan Expo to be held outside of Las Vegas as the Hynes Convention Center will play host to the event, which will take place on August 27th and 28th, running right up to the beginning of the live fight card. Much like with the two previous Expos, grappling superfights, exhibitions, seminars, autograph sessions and displays will be the order of the day for the fan-driven event which has quickly become a favorite for MMA fans.
Here's UFC President and Boston native Dana White talking about the excitement surrounding the upcoming event;
"Without a doubt, August 28th will be one of the highlights of my career, I’m thrilled to bring the UFC to Boston for the first time in our history. Boston is one of the world’s greatest fight towns, fans only expect the best, and we are bringing it with the rematch between BJ Penn and Frankie Edgar, and the Octagon-debut of boxing legend James Toney vs. one of the greatest UFC heavyweights of all-time, Randy Couture."
The main event rematch between Edgar and Penn will see Edgar look to continue the success that he had against Penn originally at UFC 112 in April in a bout that saw Edgar use takedowns and quick jabs to earn a unanimous decision victory against an unusually sluggish Penn at the UFC's first-ever event in the Middle East.
In another compelling bout on the card, two-time UFC Lightweight Championship challenger and hometown hero Kenny Florian will attempt to earn a third shot at championship gold when he takes on undefeated Ultimate Fighter alum Gray Maynard in a crucial 155-pound bout.
