In advance of a planned Asian expansion, the UFC continues to add talent from that region, as Katsunori Kikuno (21-5-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC) has joined the world’s largest MMA promotion.

MMAjunkie.com today confirmed with sources close to Kikuno that the former DEEP lightweight champion has signed a multi-fight deal with the promotion.

UFC officials have yet to announce the signing, and an octagon debut date for the fighter was not immediately clear.

The 31-year-old Kikuno is a Japanese native and black belt in judo and Kyokushin karate, and his fighting style is highly reflective of his traditional martial arts background. His previous 28 professional MMA contests have all taken place in his native Japan.

Fighting professionally since 2005, Kikuno opened his career with just one loss in his first 15 appearances, picking up a DEEP lightweight tournament win along the way with victories over Koichiro Matsumoto, Bu Kyung Jung and Jang Yong Kim. With the victory in the eight-man bracket, he was awarded the promotion’s lightweight belt.

Kikuno would balance his DEEP responsibilities with five appearances under the DREAM banner, picking up wins over Daisuke Nakamura, Kuniyoshi Hironaka and Andre Amade while suffering a few high-profile losses to Gesias “JZ” Cavalcante and Eddie Alvarez.

Most recently, Kikuno has put together a five-fight win streak that includes four first-round finishes – a run that three stoppages of 67 seconds or less.

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