MMAjunkie.com reports that, according to a recent Detroit Free Press interview with UFC VP of Regulatory Affairs Marc Ratner, UFC could return to Detroit by the end of 2009 or early 2010. Ratner seems to indicate a variety of reasons make Detroit an ideal host:

In the report, Ratner points to Michigan's, and specifically Detroit's, strong Spike TV ratings and number of pay-per-view buys as a reason to visit the state. Michigan is one of nearly 40 U.S. states that regulates MMA.

Ratner also hints at perhaps a Michigan-based fighter headlining the card:

Current UFC light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans, a former Michigan State University wrestler, could be the event's headliner, according to Ratner.

UFC last ran what is it's only Michigan event to date in May 1996, when UFC 9 drew a then-UFC record 11,200 fans for a show headlined by Dan Severn vs. Ken Shamrock.

Looks like Brett Rogers won't get his Kimbo Slice fight after all. If the CSAC approves it, he'll face Ron Humphries according to Fiveouncesofpain.com:

Former EliteXC star Brett Rogers’ long awaited return to the cage is now official for Strikeforce’s April 11 event at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.

While the bout is still pending the approval of the California State Athletic Commission, FiveOuncesOfPain.com has confirmed with multiple sources that Rogers has been scheduled to take on former BET Iron Ring veteran Ron Humphries

Sources have also confirmed that the heavyweight tilt between Rogers and Humprhies will be one of five matches featured during Showtime’s telecast of the event. The new matchup will replace the previously announced welterweight matchup between Joe Riggs and Jake Shields that was canceled after Shields was shifted to a main event matchup against Robbie Lawler during Strikeforce’s May event.

Outside of Iron Ring competition, which were not considered sanctioned bouts, Humphries is 5-0, according to Sherdog.com’s fight finder. His last official bout was for the International Sport Combat Federation in December. Facing Nick Thomas, Humphries recorded a TKO victory just 2:02 of round 1.

Edit: Update-Strikeforce executive Mike Afromovitz told MMAJunkie.com just after 4:30 PM ET that the bout is not yet official, but "it's a possibility".

The Brazilian website TATAME.com has posted an update on WEC fighter Will Ribeiro, who had been in a coma since a motorcycle accident in late December, and the news is very good...

Great news for the national MMA. Will Ribeiro, athlete who was doing a good job at WEC and had suffered a serious motorcycle accident in December of 2008, has already presented improvements and returned home. "He has improved considerably and is already talking normal, now he only has to do physiotherapy to recover", said Luiz Alves, Will’s Muay Thai coach, excited about the recovery of the athlete. "He is already talking a lot, playing with everyone. ‘Minotouro’ visited him yesterday, the guys are going there all the time. Now he will start doing the physiotherapy at home”, concluded the coach.

It's probably too early to start thinking about when he might return to fighting, but this is easily his biggest win so far. It's wonderful to see that he pulled through and is recovering well, and continued best wishes to Ribeiro as he continues his recovery.

Apparently having an amicable relationship with Dana White doesn't mean your major TV events will go unchallenged. MMAJunkie has the report of UFC doing counterprogramming against Strikeforce's 4/11 event on Showtime:

Strikeforce's debut on Showtime won't go unchallenged.

The organization's April 11 "Shamrock vs. Diaz" card, which takes place at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif., won't be the only MMA event on cable television that night.

Spike TV and the UFC will counter the broadcast with a replay of UFC 94, a January pay-per-view event that featured the long-awaited rematch between UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre and lightweight title-holder B.J. Penn.

The broadcast marks the first time UFC 94 has been available on basic cable TV.

Strikeforce, long considered the most successful MMA organization outside the UFC, recently acquired select assets from the the parent company of the defunct EliteXC organization. Strikeforce picked up more than 40 fighters' contracts, as well as the Showtime deal.

While Strikeforce Promoter Scott Coker and UFC President Dana White have always maintained an amicable relationship, they'll fight it out for viewers on April 11.

Strikeforce offers an intriguing main event between former UFC and Strikeforce champion Frank Shamrock and lightweight stand-out lightweight Nick Diaz, who meet at a catch-weight of 179 pounds. Other top match-ups includes Strikeforce world lightweight champ Josh Thomson vs. Gilbert Melendez, Joe Riggs vs. Jake Shields, Scott Smith vs. Benji Radach and Hitomi Akano vs. Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos.

Strikeforce viewers will need a paid subscription to Showtime, a premium cable channel.

Meanwhile, in addition to St. Pierre vs. Penn, UFC 94 featured Lyoto Machida vs. Thiago Silva, Stephan Bonnar vs. Jon Jones, Karo Parisyan vs. Dong Hyun Kim and Nate Diaz vs. Clay Guida. The event will air on Spike TV, a basic-cable station.

The head-to-head programming is a first for Strikeforce and the UFC. However, the UFC has twice battled Affliction Entertainment's pay-per-view broadcasts.

MMAWeekly reports that Rich Crunkilton is now off Sunday's WEC 39 due to a knee injury. Ricardo Lamas is in on 4 days' notice to face Bart Palaszewski.

A change has been made to the upcoming WEC 39 card in Corpus Christi, Texas, as lightweight Richard Crunkilton has been forced out of his matchup against Bart Palaszewski due to a knee injury. Stepping in to replace him will be WEC newcomer Ricardo Lamas, who takes the fight on just four days notice.

The injury and new opponent were confirmed to MMAWeekly.com by sources close to the situation on Tuesday evening.

Palaszewski and Crunkilton were set to be the co-main event of the evening opposite of the WEC featherweight title fight between champion Mike Brown and Leonard Garcia. All indications point to the fight between Palaszewski and Lamas still staying on the main card with the same slot as the previous bout.

Lamas will make his WEC debut with a record of 5-0 as a professional, training out of Chicago. He was a wrestler and also an assistant coach at Elmhurst College in Illinois, and trains jiu-jitsu with Jeff Neal.

WEC 39 takes place Sunday night from the American Bank Center. It will be televised live on the Versus Network.

Word going around was Palaszeski may have been in line for a WEC Lightweight Title shot when Jamie Varner returns with a win, not sure if those plans will change with Crunkilton being off.

Those stretchy pants are getting an early workout, as DREAM has added Shinya Aoki to the DREAM 7 card ahead of his Welterweight GP participation at DREAM 8. MMAJunkie.com has the story:

Just a month before he's set to compete in DREAM's upcoming welterweight grand prix, Shinya Aoki (19-3) will fight David Gardner (16-10). Additionally, Mitsuhiro Ishida (17-4-1) meets Daisuke Nakamura (19-9).

DREAM.7 takes place at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, and airs live on HDNet.

The Aoki vs. Gardner booking is a peculiar one.

Up until just a few days ago, UFC and WEC veteran John Alessio told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) he was close to signing, and expected to sign, for the fight with Aoki.

Instead, Aoki, who recently won the WAMMA world lightweight title with a New Year's Eve win over Eddie Alvarez, meets Gardner, a seven-year veteran who's previously defeated the likes of Rich Clementi, Ryan Schultz and, most recently, WEC veteran Kenneth Alexander.

Health permitting Aoki will then compete at DREAM.8, which takes place April 5. The event features the opening round of the organization's welterweight grand prix, in which Aoki would be an odds-on favorite.

Ishida, meanwhile, looks to build off a September victory in his Strikeforce debut over Justin Wilcox when he meets fellow PRIDE veteran Nakamura, who's riding an eight-fight win streak.

Ishida is still being considered for a potential April 11 fight with Gilbert Melendez (and possibly Strikeforce world lightweight champion Josh Thomson), but with just a month between the two events, his potential Strikeforce participation is far from a guarantee.

It sounds like what is basically a "booked to win" fight for Aoki and a move to help sell more tickets in the absence of Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto, and a tune-up for the WWGP, but considering what happened when Sengoku did similar with Takanori Gomi this shouldn't be written off as a mismatch by any means. They've also given Ishida a tough matchup in Nakamura, this might force SF to consider someone else to face Thomson if he loses or takes too much damage.