The news broke late yesterday that the UFC  signed middleweight Yoshihiro Akiyama to an exclusive contract.

Most MMA websites have gone over Akiyama's impressive resume, but this latest signing by the UFC, is the latest chapter in what appears to be a stockpiling of Asian talent for an expansion into the Pacific markets.

The previous examples of this preparation is the return of Caol Uno to the UFC. Or Dana White's very public courting of Olympic gold medalist and Japanese native Satoshi Ishii. At first it seemed that the Judo fighter would be fighting in the UFC's heavyweight division, though in recent weeks it appears that deal may have fallen apart.

I noticed two interesting pieces from the announcement article,

Born of Korean descent in Osaka, Japan, Akiyama first made his name in the international sports world as a decorated black belt in judo who collected numerous titles, including a Gold medal in the 2002 Asian Games.

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Press conferences in Japan and Korea will take place in the coming days; details to be announced shortly.

The reference to Korea indicates that the UFC is also considering the pennisula nation as a probable market for expansion. One need to only look at UFC 94 which featured Korean native Dong Hyun Kim on the televised card, a decision many questioned. Also, the recent signing of Denis Kang, a fighter with Korean heritage, is further evidence of a possible expansion.

If the past several years have taught us anything about Zuffa's strategy for expansion, they want to have local fighters on local cards. Such rapid succession of several high profile fighters may mean another international expansion is coming.

Despite the excitement and speculation surrounding a possible expansion the UFC will have to undergo certain changes. For instance the UFC's marketing and presentation as a packaged product is very Anglo-centric. A scheme that works well and can be easily replicated in countries with shared heritages i.e. United States, Canada, Ireland, United Kingdom and soon to be Germany (after all English is a Germanic language).

Now Japan does have an MMA tradition, thanks to Pride, but it is very different then the Anglo conception of mixed martial arts.

If one wants an example of what I am referring to compare this promo poster from Dream 7 to the upcoming UFC 96 promo poster.