First off, let me offer a disclaimer. I struggled with this piece mightily, trying it out in several formats and renditions. I wasn't sure if I was attacking the UFC, Columbus, Midwest fans or celebrating a great established event in the town I grew up in. In the end this piece is nothing more than informative of why Columbus is a strong market for the UFC during the first weekend in March.

When the UFC first came to Columbus three years ago, Dana White was shocked by the outpouring of affection from fans. It helped that Nationwide Arena was host to UFC 68, where Randy Couture upset the UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia. In the post-fight press conference White assured the media that the UFC would return to the Buckeye State.

Fast forward three years and it seems unthinkable that the UFC did not know that this market existed. But why has Columbus been so successful a venue for the UFC? The answer is simple, there is a three day event occuring simultaneously across the street at the Columbus Convention Center.

Columbus is the host the Arnold Classic, now called the Arnold Sports Festival. The event was founded by Arnold Schwarzenegger as a way of giving back to a city that helped launch his career. Since the late eighties the Festival has grown, offering more than just weightlifting and body building competitions. Now it includes everything from archery to cheerleading. 

The Arnold Sports Festival is currently the largest sporting festival in North America. This year over 165,000 tickets were sold, over 700 realtor booths were purchased (there is still a waiting list), over 17,000 competitors and an estimated $40 million in revenue for Central Ohio. Compare those numbers to the UFC's and it is easy to see who the big boy in town is.

The very presence of such an event raises questions about Columbus as a market for the UFC. When an event brings in over 100,000 fitness enthusiasts, a demographic that is directly in the UFC's roundhouse, how many are really from Columbus and greater Ohio? If most of the UFC attendees are out-of-towners, does that mean that Ohio isn't a hot spot for MMA?

I find these questions unsettling but necessary to ask. After all, the UFC has come to Ohio four times, three of which have been on the same weekend, this weekend. The only deviation was a Rich Franklin Anderson Silva fight in Franklin's hometown of Cincinnati. Since then there hasn't been the slightest hint of a rumor that the UFC would return to the Queen City.

It is very reasonable to conclude that the Arnold Sports Festival is the principle reason of established success for the UFC in Ohi and that won't change this weekend. Despite UFC 96 being a weak fightcard the event will most likely be a financial success. Granted news broke today that UFC 96 is not sold out, a troubling development when one considers that there is an influx of over 150,000 fitness enthusiasts, but that may be a reflection of the economy, the fightcard or both.

Still Dana White is promising to return multiple times to Columbus and Nationwide Arena. Any future event will likely occur in the first weekend of March, the same weekend as the Arnold Classic.  The marriage of convience between the two entities will continue and will continue to make money for all involved. But that doesn't answer my fears that Ohio is not what it appears to be for the MMA community.