Yushin Okami is 10 – 3 in the UFC having defeated fighters such as Alan Belcher, Mike Swick, Evan Tanner, Mark Munoz and Nat Marquardt. Pretty impressive wouldn’t you say? Dana White and the UFC must not think so. How about Hatsu Hioki? 25 – 4 mixed martial arts career having defeated George Roop in his first UFC fight. Common sense suggests you put these two on the main card at UFC 144 in Japan, but they have been left off.
UFC 144 returns to Japan February 27th 2012. This is the first time UFC has held a card in Japan since 1997 for UFC 29. This is an opportune time for the UFC to take hold of a Japanese fan base and make a huge push in the far east market. UFC has never been so popular and on a global scale, no one is hotter. This is not your typical international PPV for the UFC, they need to pay particular attention to details because Japan has not viewed an MMA event of this scale in a very long time and I believe the UFC has created a dreary card for the Japanese people. I’m not an expert of Japanese culture, but they are a very different society and you must appease and respect their customs.
The issue with this card is not the quality of fights, I see some impressive fights on this card with Quinton Rampage Jackson vs. Ryan Bader, Joe Lauzon vs. Anthony Pettis and of course, Ben Henderson vs. Frankie Edgar. Up and down the card is legit. However, the UFC marketed the event as the return to Japan, but completely lacks indigenous competitors which may serve as a problem.
If the UFC does not make changes to this card and shuffle fights around with other cards in early 2012, there is potential for an implosion. Preliminary card features Yushin Okami, Takanori Gomi and Hatsu Hioki. With the exception of Gomi; Okami and Hikoi are riding some very respectable resumes and Okami just wrapped up a main event fight with Anderson Silva in Brazil. If I’m a fan in Japan, I’m looking for Okami and Hioki on the main card. And why not? Hioki is an elite fighter and Dana White praises this kid whenever he talks about him. The UFC has plenty of cards in the pipeline to move Joe Lauzon and Anthony Pettis to another date, or for the sake of all of us, dump Mark Hunt from the card. I thought Dana White was done with the circus acts, i.e. James Toney and Kimbo Slice. Okami and Hikoi are being bumped for a Mark Hunt fight? That is absolute bananas. When the lights fade on the main card, Okami’s night will be complete and Japanese fans will be left with Yoshihiro Akiyama who makes his welterweight debut against Jake Shields.
To argue that Yushin Okami is not worthy of a main card slot in his home country is totally illogical. As discussed, he is coming off a huge PPV main event with Anderson Silva from Brazil and could have been matched up with other top-tier talent in the division, i.e. Chael Sonnen, Mark Munoz, Brian Stann, and the list goes on. UFC will sell the PPV in the states based on the Edgar/Bendo fight alone.
When the UFC ventured to Brazil in the summer, the entire card featured Brazilian fighters and the arena was going to bananas. Granted, Brazil is a staple for some of the best talent in the UFC and the entire country watches MMA, but the Japanese are also a proud culture who appreciates the art of fighting and would be eager to see their own showcased when the UFC returns.
Listen, I hope I’m wrong, I hope that this card does not disappoint the Japanese. The card is phenomenal, but I’m hoping against the potential backlash. I hope this succeeds, but I see the potential for failure.
This is only my opinion, I understand this is a business and money needs to be made. Although the fight takes place overseas, it is available on PPV and is an extremely attractive card for US fans to buy. But putting Okami and Hioki on the main card is not be a monetary hammering, it would serve all customers well and give the Japanese fans a sense of pride and encouragement that they are still significant in mixed martial arts.