WSOF’s Ray Sefo: Debut event in Japan expected for March or April
With World Series of Fighting set to travel outside the U.S. for the first time this weekend, the budding MMA organization is making known its plans to expand internationally.
It has been somewhat of a turbulent first year for WSOF, but with the seventh show in history and final event of the year going down this Saturday in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, company president Ray Sefo has major expectations for 2014.
The most prominent of those plans, though, is continuing to take the WSOF cage around the globe. That starts with a trip to Japan, where the company recently formed a partnership with longtime Japanese MMA promotion Pancrase.
The partnership will allow WSOF to host an event in the country next year, and while a date has yet to be secured, Sefo believes the overseas debut could take place as soon as next spring.
“Right now there’s no definite date [for Japan],†Sefo told MMAjunkie on Wednesday’s WSOF 7 conference call. “We are looking at the end of March, early April.â€
While hosting an event in Japan would be a milestone achievement for WSOF, Sefo’s plans stretch well beyond just one country.
WSOF will always be an American-based promotion; however, Sefo intends to return to Canada and also debut in parts of Europe, Asia and Australia.
“We’re going to look to do six shows in New Zealand, six shows in Australia,†Sefo said. “Canada will probably be able to do the same thing.â€
If Sefo’s agenda comes to fruition, it will mean a dramatically busier schedule for the promotion to handle.
All the details have yet to be hammered out, but Sefo says not to expect all the events around the world to be of even quality, as some will be aired on WSOF’s television partner NBC Sports Network while others will be streamed online.
“Of course every show won’t be on the mother ship of NBC, but a few of those shows will most likely be on NBC for sure.â€
More news on WSOF’s worldwide presence should be revealed in the coming weeks and months, but if you’re a fan of the upstart MMA organization, the next year is one to follow closely.
“We’ve got big plans for 2014,†Sefo said. “We are going global.â€
