Fischer is tasked with recruiting local talent, developing relationships with the region’s sports federations and introducing Asian markets to the UFC’s live events and TV programming.
“It’s a fantastic market,” said Fischer, who spent most of his NBA time developing a successful division in China. “I think we’re just scratching the surface. A lot of martial arts began their tradition there. We’re very respectful of that.”
UFC president Dana White long has had a fascination with China, where the promotion recently scored a broadcast deal with Inner Mongolia Television. Political, economical and other issues aside, White knows the country’s 1.4 billion residents (many of whom fall into the UFC’s targeted young-male demo) present unparalleled opportunities.
Still, UFC officials aren’t ready to throw in the towel on nearby Japan. Although the country has a massive fan base, the MMA industry has been hard to navigate and plagued by rumored ties to the yakuza (a Japanese organized crime syndicate).
The UFC bought Japan’s most popular organization — the mismanaged PRIDE Fighting Championships — in 2007 only to shut it down after legal issues. And the country’s new top promotion, DREAM, could be dead by year’s end unless much-needed investment money is secured.
But rather than put all their eggs in that Japanese basket, the UFC is going after the whole region.
“China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Southeast Asia — all of these countries have tremendous potential,” Fischer said.
Cincinnati’s Straus headed to the Shark tank
Cincinnati-based lightweight Daniel Straus, one of the area’s top prospects, will take his eight-fight win streak into this weekend’s Shark Fights 13 event.
Straus (12-3) replaced injured Marcus Hicks and now meets WEC veteran Karen Darabedyan (9-3) on the Saturday, Sept. 11, card in Amarillo, Texas.
Shark Fights is one of the country’s top regional promotions, and it’ll make its pay-per-view debut with the card. Straus vs. Darabedyan, though, is part of a preliminary card that streams for free on Sherdog.com.
If victorious, Straus is likely to get a call from one of the sport’s major organizations, such as the UFC or WEC. Among the Team Vision fighter’s 2010 accomplishments are a January upset of UFC vet Gideon Ray and a decision victory over highly touted Chad Hinton at June’s Bellator 26 event in Louisville.
Dann Stupp is editor-in-chief of MMAjunkie.com, voted best media outlet in the 2008 and 2009 World MMA Awards. For the latest mixed-martial-arts news, go to www.MMAjunkie.com.
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