Akiyama Signs for UFC
Wednesday 25 February 2009
It has been known for a while that Akiyama's relationship with FEG was not as it should be. It has been rumored that he could sign for the UFC or Sengoku, but now it has been announced that he has signed for the UFC.
Akiyama has been followed by controversy, and he has been a fighter the Japanese fans loved to hate. His fight with Sakuraba did not help matters, when it was discovered that he had applied lotion to his body before the fight. Dispite him being an unpopular fighter, he is one fighter that the fans ALWAYS want to see and he is one of the most marketable fighters in the world.
Now he will take his show to the UFC, and I am sure his impact there will be immediate.
Source:
UFC
3 comments:
Fucking idiot. Signing with zuffa will put his career on hold for 2 years, at least.
not only that, but the UFC is about the worse thing that ever happened to mma. They completely killed free agency and refuse to cross promote. If they can not buy someone out (Pride, WEC, WFA), then they try to sign all of their fighters (CC, Akiyama, Kang) to run them out of business. The average american fan has no idea who Akiyama is. They signed him for the same reason they are trying to sign Ishii (and unsuccessfully Kid and Overeem), to put the nail in the coffin of Japanese mma.
To be honest though, the treatment of Akiyama in Japan has probably not been the best.
You can look at the treatment of Akiyama vs. Badr Hari.
I've always loved watching Akiyama, and would have liked to see him in Japan. But I can see why he would like to try something new...
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