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If you thought live counter-programming was the only trick the UFC has up their sleeve for Strikeforce on April 17, you might be sorely mistaken. They may be going after Strikeforce’s ticket sales too.

The venue for the proposed UFC event has not been settled upon, though speculation centers on Vanderbilt University’s Memorial Gymnasium in Nashville. Tennessee Athletic Commission Executive Director Jeff Mullen told Sherdog.com the UFC had not yet applied for a permit.

For those that aren’t familiar with Nashville, the Bridgestone Arena and Vanderbilt University are literally only two miles apart. If Tennessee mixed martial arts fans have the choice between attending a UFC event live or a Strikeforce event, you know a lot are going to hit up the UFC show even if their card is weaker, and I wouldn’t put it past the UFC to give away boatloads of tickets if they have to just to screw Strikeforce. All is fair in love and war I suppose, but damn, that would just be downright mean.

By the way, Mike Swick will not fight Matt Serra on the card. He has a pretty serious arm injury that will likely need surgery. The other big rumor out there is that James Toney would make his debut against Kimbo Slice, but all actual reports on Kimbo and Toney suggest otherwise. The rumor is coming from Carmichael Dave who’s close with Dana White though, so you never know.

One other tidbit, and it probably goes without saying, but word is Strikeforce’s future with CBS may be heavily dependent upon the ratings of the Nashville show.

Update: More from Dave Meltzer:

On Thursday, UFC president Dana White confirmed a live show on the same date, “Ultimate Fight Night 22,” on Spike TV. While UFC countered an Affliction pay-per-view show in 2008 with a live event featuring Anderson Silva, if things don’t change this time, it will be the first time the two top promotions run major nationally televised events simultaneously.

No matches are confirmed for the UFC show, however. Thursday, White attempted to make Matt Serra vs. Mike Swick, but that will be impossible since Swick just suffered an arm injury and will likely need surgery. UFC sources indicated Kimbo Slice vs. James Toney was under consideration, but the talks hit snags.

No site has been confirmed for the UFC show, although it is known at least two locations are under consideration in the state of Tennessee, including Nashville’s Vanderbilt University.

So it’s definitely happening, the questions are with who and where?

The NSAC has released the fighter payouts for UFC 109. Keep in mind, these figures represent the base contracted pay the fighter receives from the promotion. These figures do not include any additional “locker room” bonuses, pay-per-view revenue sharing, or sponsorship money, which in many cases exceeds a fighter’s base pay. These numbers also do not account for taxes, insurance, and license fees.

Fanhouse’s Ariel Helwani caught up with Dana White and the winners from UFC 109 to get their thoughts on the fights.

UFC 109 took place earlier this evening at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.

In the night’s main event, Randy Couture and Mark Coleman finally met in the Octagon.

In the co-main event, Nate Marquardt and Chael Sonnen battled it out for a shot at the UFC middleweight title.

Demian Maia returned to action against Dan Miller.

Frank Trigg fought for his job against Matt Serra.

Mike Swick stepped in to take Paulo Thiago.

Results, thoughts, bonuses and live gate (when available) after the jump.

Matt Serra and Frank Trigg meet in a welterweight battle this Saturday, Feb. 6, at UFC 109.

RawVegas.tv’s Dave Farra talks to Matt Serra about his upcoming fight with Frank Trigg and all the trash they’ve been talking back and forth.

On this week’s edition of Fox Fight Game, Mike Straka and crew debate whether Mark Coleman and Randy Couture are too old, plus Rolles Gracie and Matt Serra stop by to talk about their upcoming fights.

It’s do or die for Frank Trigg at UFC 109. If he loses to Matt Serra, it will in all likelihood be his last fight in the UFC. And unlike Serra, who has a career as a gym owner and instructor to fall back on, Trigg tells Steve Cofield he doesn’t have a plan B lined up. He’s not sure how he will make a living if he’s forced into retirement and because of that he thinks he’s hungrier than Serra to pull out the win on Feb. 6.