Ohio’s Arnold Fitness Weekend in March will likely welcome Strikeforce to its line-up.

Strikeforce officials told Sherdog.com Tuesday that although the event was not yet confirmed, the “chances are good” that the promotion will stage an event on March 5 at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio.

MMAJunkie first broke the news of the potential event Tuesday, reporting that Ohio Athletic Commission executive director Bernie Profato had confirmed that Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker had committed to a March 5 date in the state’s capital.

The Arnold Fitness Weekend, formerly known as The Arnold Classic, is a weekend bodybuilding and fitness expo named after legendary bodybuilder Arnold Schwarzenegger. The event, which brings in thousands of spectators from all over the world annually, has expanded its scope in recent years, aligning itself with both submission grappling and MMA.

For the last four years, Zuffa coordinated with the event to promote shows, beginning with UFC 68 in 2007, followed by UFC 82 in 2008 and UFC 96 in 2009. This past March, instead of a UFC event, Zuffa promoted WEC 47 at the Nationwide Arena for the 2010 Arnold Fitness Weekend, which saw Brian Bowles upset Miguel Torres to win the WEC bantamweight title.

Zuffa elected not to participate this coming year to focus on furthering its reach in various international markets. UFC 127 will go down on Feb. 27 in Sydney, Australia and UFC 128 is set to take place on March 19 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

Two Strikeforce events are in the works prior to a March 5 bill. The 13th installment of the Strikeforce Challengers series will take place Jan. 7 in Nashville, Tenn., headlined by a showdown between welterweight prospects Tyron Woodley and Tarec Saffiedine. As well, unbeaten heavyweight Olympian Daniel Cormier will meet Devin Cole on the card.

Also, a yet-to-be-announced event is rumored for Jan. 29 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif., which could feature Strikeforce welterweight king Nick Diaz’s return to action.

As expected Strikeforce will make its Ohio debut in March as part of the Arnold Sports Festival.

MMAjunkie.com editor-in-chief Dann Stupp first discussed the possibility in Monday's edition of the "Dayton Daily News."

Today, Ohio Athletic Commission Executive Director Bernie Profato confirmed with MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker since has committed to hosting a show in Ohio's capital city on March 5.

The event is expected to air on Showtime from the 19,000-seat Nationwide Arena. Coker and Arnold Sports Festival co-promoter Jim Lorimer currently are working out details.

The Arnold Sports Festival is three-day sports and fitness exhibition that draws tens of thousands of attendees. From 2007 to 2010, the UFC or WEC hosted a show in conjunction with the Arnolds but abandoned the slot this year to focus on continued international expansion. Profato continually calls the Arnolds/MMA event weekend "as perfect a marriage as you'll find in professional sports."

Profato said a few organizations expressed interest in the vacant March slot, but after the two finally spoke, Coker recently confirmed the company's interest in holding a show.

No details are confirmed for the event, but a source told MMAjunkie.com that Dan Henderson – who headlined 2008's UFC 82 event in Columbus against middleweight champ Anderson Silva – could headline against Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante. Ohio residents and Strikeforce fighters Jorge Gurgel and Roger Bowling also are possibilities for the card.

The UFC first teamed up with the Arnolds in 2007 for the hugely successful UFC 68, which featured Randy Couture's first post-retirement fight and his unanimous-decision win over then-heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia. At the time, the event produced the largest attendance in North American MMA history (19,079) and shattered Nationwide Arena's records for attendance, live gate ($3 million) and merchandise sales.

Strikeforce never has held an event in Ohio, though the company did visit Florida, Mississippi, Oregon, Tennessee and Texas for the first time in the promotion's history in 2010.