Issue #2 - Will the WEC's plans to build a 125-pound division rob Japan of the last MMA niche that it has?

Kelly - Yes. The best 125-pound fighters are in Japan, mostly in Shooto, with a few scattered "also rans" here in the U.S. By adding the flyweights to the WEC's lineup, the mighty mites now get the power of the Zuffa marketing machine behind them, which will attract all the best 125-pounders to the U.S. Guys like Shinichi Kojima and Yuki Shoujou will be gracing our TVs on the Versus channel within the next year, which spells disaster for the Palace Fighting Championships since they’ve made a good living off the little things in life. The WEC is about to open up a black hole that will suck all the flyweights in the world into it, raping Japan of its last vestige of MMA attraction.  

Bear - C’mon, K-Criggs! You know just as well as I do that there is another popular MMA niche in Japan, and though most Americans don’t share the same appreciation of freakish “Super Hulk” fights that your BFF does, let’s not completely write this off. Anything less would be a disservice to the greatness that oozes off the ‘roided arms of Jose Canseco! In any event, I don’t see the WEC being able to rape Japan of the top flyweights. Molest? Sure. But rape? Nope. There haven’t been too many Japanese imports to come from overseas to fight for the Zuffa Machine. Off the top of my head, we’ve seen Dokojonosuke Mishima, Caol Uno, Kazuhiro Nakamura, Ryo Chonan, Yushin Okami, Yoshiro Akiyama, Akihiro Gono and Takeya Mizugaki step into the cage within the past two years. I know there are a few others that have, but for the most part, that’s all Zuffa has really been able to secure. There is a lot more Japanese talent they haven’t been able to sign like Takanori Gomi, Mach Sakurai and Kid Yamamoto. I believe they get paid well from sponsorships back home. Also there are some fighters in Japan who have stated they do not want to sign with Zuffa, namely Shinya Aoki. Now with all of that said, and with the top flyweights currently competing in the land of the rising sun, it’s clear to me that the WEC will not be able to grab all the top fighters. Cali’s Palace Fighting Championships, however, is doomed.
 
Issue #3 – With Rich Franklin’s recent marquee attractions being contested at a 195-pound catchweight, is it about time the UFC institutes a Cruiserweight division?

Bear – Conceptually, it makes sense. Most weight classes are separated by a ten-pound weight gap, but the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions make up a twenty-pound difference. By creating a special 195-pound cruiserweight division, it will bring an extra title fight to the Zuffa machine and as we all know, title matches bring more excitement and legitimacy to a fight card. Plus having an additional title contested at future events would definitely sway more...