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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
Zuffa might not be returning to Columbus for a fifth straight March event during the Arnold Sports Classic convention, but MMA fans in Ohio may still get their MMA fix, as MMAJunkie.com reports that Strikeforce is currently negotiating to bring an event to the Nationwide Arena that weekend.
The UFC ran three straight March events to coincide with the Arnold's, an annual sports and fitness convention, starting in 2007; and sister-organization World Extreme Cagefighting ran an event at the arena this March. However, the UFC's 2011 schedule will did not have a spot open to make it a fifth straight year in Columbus.
The head of the Ohio State Athletic Commission, Bernie Profato, then put out feelers to other organizations, and Strikeforce responded.
"We're in talks with the (Arnold) organizations," Strikeforce CEO Coker said. "We think it could be a good fit for us.
"It'd be a big event, for sure," Coker said. "We're working on it."
Penick's Analysis: The UFC set a record for attendance to an MMA event in North America with their first trip to Columbus in 2007, and they've received a healthy reception from fans in the area for each of their subsequent events. There will likely be a good market for Strikeforce to tap into here, especially if they bring a good event to the city. This is a smart move for them to take advantage of the convention traffic and that affiliation with it opening up.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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