Zach Arnold believes the real significance behind the Akiyama signing is a play for the South Korean market. To wit:
UFC could run a spot show in Japan, certainly. But as WWE found out, the marketplace right now for the fight game (pro-wrestling, MMA, etc.) in Japan is really on life support. K-1 does well for their core product, but that’s it. That’s the whole ballgame. Even when the Japanese market was strong 3-4 years ago, it was nearly impossible for a foreigner to jump into the scene there. Now with a weak market and the same politics, it’s nearly impossible for a long-term play there. South Korea’s the real market at stake here for UFC.
Interesting note: Jordan Breen tells me he's got a long piece coming out on Sherdog soon that details why South Korea is the better choice for penetration than Japan if you're Zuffa.
