(Photo courtesy of Sports Navi)

UFC held a press conference in Tokyo on Wednesday, March 10 to announce the broadcast of the upcoming "UFC Fight Night: Florian vs. Gomi" on Japanese network TV.

"UFC Fight Night: Florian vs. Gomi," scheduled for March 31 at Bojangles Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina, will air on tape delay in Japan on April 8th during the one-hour prime time slot from 22:00 to 22:54 JST. The fight card features the debut of former Pride FC Lightweight champion, Takanori Gomi; also slated for appearance are prominent Japanese fighters, Caol Uno and Yushin Okami.

UFC events currently air on Pay-Per-View on the satellite broadcasting and pay TV station, WOWOW, in Japan. At the presser, Zuffa counsel, Jaime Pollack, announced the partnership with TV Tokyo, the smallest of the free-to-air broadcast networks.

Zuffa's initial foray into Japanese broadcast network took place in 2005 during Pride FC's heyday; the collaboration with TV Tokyo was short-lived and fruitless. Five years later, Zuffa renews the pursuit of the once-impervious Japanese market as its oversea expansion kicks into high gear.

Pollack told the press that Japan is the most highly coveted market in Asia in light of Zuffa's plan to increase the brand recognition in the region. With "big names" like Gomi, Uno, and Okami, Zuffa hopes to make the upcoming fight card in North Carolina a catalyst for popularizing the UFC brand in Japan.

The TV Tokyo sports executive in attendance announced an ambitious (read: unrealistic) goal  for the station to attain a double-digit rating. To put the number in perspective, DREAM, Japan's premier MMA organization, recorded 16.2% average during prime time on TBS (Tokyo Broadcasting System) for the very successful DREAM 9; other DREAM events during the primetime slot have recorded around 10% average.

Zuffa's partnership with TV Tokyo is a great news for MMA enthusiasts in Japan; however, given the scarce following UFC has in Japan,capturing new fans, particularly among the large legion of casual fans, remains a daunting task.

Props: UFC.com

Quoteworthy:

"The hottest ticket in New Jersey just got hotter, as it has been announced that Playboy cover model and UFC All-Access host Rachelle Leah will be returning to her old gig as Octagon Girl for one night only on Saturday, March 27th at UFC 111 in Newark, New Jersey’s Prudential Center."

Mmmmmmmmmmmm .... Oh, and "St. Pierre vs. Hardy" has officially sold out. Coincidence? Nah ...

MMA fans the world over who are dying to catch the last of Hidehiko Yoshida live, take notice.

J-Rock, the sports and entertainment management company that will host Yoshida's upcoming retirement event, Astra, has joined forces with Tele Planning International to bring the event to MMA fans around the world through a new premium internet TV service.

Tele Planning International, an international advertising and sports marketing firm based in Japan, will tap Cavea, the "new virtual event arena on the internet," that will be launched on April 1st. The premium internet TV will broadcast Astra live from Nippon Budokan on April 25th.

J-Rock and Tele Planning are currently in the process of ironing out the details of the event production and live webcast; stay tuned to MMAmania for updates on this momentous collaboration as they become available.

The former judo Olympian and Japanese MMA icon, Hidehiko Yoshida, will grace the ring for his final bout at Astra. According to J-Rock, the list of his potential opponent has been whittled down to three - two foreign fighters and one Japanese fighter - and the bout confirmation is forthcoming.

Also featured on the card is the welterweight match between the current DEEP champion, Yuya Shirai and Che Mills, the two-time vanquisher of DREAM welterweight champion, Marius Zaromskis. The fast-rising Michihiro Omigawa will take on the American Top Team prospect, Micah Miller. Along with Omigawa, fellow Yoshida dojo members, Makoto Takimoto and Kazuhiro Nakamura, are also scheduled to fight on the card; rumors suggest that Nakamura may face the fellow Pride and UFC veteran, Denis Kang.

The up-and-coming light heavyweight tells MMA Fighting they could square off on Showtime in May ...

"I think it's a good match-up for me. He's a big, strong guy. Of course, the fight camp he has over there, he trains with a lot of good guys, so I think he brings a lot to the table. You got a puncher's chance in this game. You know, him getting knocked out by Mike Kyle, it showed some of his weaknesses, but in the big scheme of things, anybody can get caught on any given day. So any time I train, I train for the most dangerous guy in the world, and I'm really training hard for this fight. I'm in the gym every day training for the most dangerous people. I definitely see myself, with a win over 'Feijao,' as the top contender for the title."

Antwain Britt looks to vault himself into Strikeforce's 205-pound title chase by defeating the exceptionally talented Rafael Cavalcante, who despite an upset loss to Mike Pyle last June, has been electric since his 2006 professional debut at Pantanal Combat. Can "The Juggernaut" smash his way into bigger and better things at the expense of the Brazilian? Or will "Feijao" send him tumbling down the light heavyweight ladder?

From the champ:

Hear from "The Outlaw" after the jump.

Props: Pro MMA Radio

Quoteworthy:

"It's gonna be a matter of schedules. I think we would both [WEC and UFC] like to come back next year. I've already told the guys upstairs that I want to come back. If there's a spot next year, I want to come back. The UFC couldn't come this year because of their international travel. I'm gonna block this date out for the WEC next year. Columbus is a great place. The media here was great. We were on all the TV networks and radio stations, and the folks at the Arnold Classic helped us out a lot."

WEC General Manager Reed Harris was a guest on MMAmania.com's exclusive presentation of Pro MMA Radio this week, and to the delight of Ohioans everywhere, he stated that he intends on bringing the mixed martial arts promotion back next year. That is of course if there's a spot. The UFC had occupied the Arnold Classic Weekend in terms of MMA events for the previous three years, but backed out of that spot this year presumably due to their hectic spring schedule. So for you Maniacs in the Great Lakes region, you can rejoice in the fact that barring any unforeseen circumstances, a Zuffa product will indeed be rolling through your territory for years to come.

Calling all TUF guys:

Spike TV and UFC recently announced an open casting call for the next installment of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) franchise at the The Omni Charlotte Hotel in Charlotte, NC, on Thursday, April 1.

The tryouts will coincide with the UFC Fight Night 21 event held on Wednesday (March 31).

Lightweight (155 pounds) and light heavyweight (205 pounds) hopefuls should arrive at the location between 8 and 9 a.m. ET. Registration will take place as soon as the doors open and tryouts are set to begin at 10 a.m. ET.

UFC President Dana White is expected to oversee the tryouts with Spike TV’s senior vice president of sports and specials, Brian Diamond. No debut or possible coaching candidates for Season 12 are known at this time.

Applicants must be over the age of 21 and have a professional fight record with a minimum of three fights. Dress code would be that of a normal sparring session and candidates are expected to bring the appropriate gear and equipment.

To download a copy of the application for TUF 12 click here.

UFC light heavyweight Stephan Bonnar lost his appeal to overturn the wrong end of a TKO ruling he suffered at the hands (or head) of Krzysztof Soszynski when the pair threw leather at last month's UFC 110 event from the Acer Arena in Sydney, Australia, according to TSN.ca.

"The American Psycho" blames referee John Sharp for missing an inadvertent headbutt that busted him open in the third round of their 205-pound war, causing Bonnar to leak all over himself, Soszynski and the better part of the Octagon floor.

He attempted to have the ruling reversed to a technical draw based on the nature of the stoppage, but also still wants to prove to fight fans he would have been victorious "Down Under."

That chance may come when the two collide in a rematch penciled in for The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 11 Finale, which is scheduled for June 19 in Las Vegas.

"The Polish Experiment" has been gracious throughout the ordeal and like Bonnar, wants his win to come from being the better fighter, which he may get the chance to prove (again) if the June 19 rematch comes to fruition.

While UFC President Dana White has already gone on record about keeping Bonnar on the payroll, the once formidable contender still has a lot to lose after dropping three straight bouts.

Conversely, Soszynski has won four out of five since his UFC debut in December of 2008 and could continue his rise through the light heavyweight ranks if he can finish what he started back in February.

Stay tuned to MMAmania.com for more on this developing bout, as well as additional details on the Ultimate Fighter 11 Finale as they're released.