Of all the smaller mixed martial arts promotions that have come and gone through the years of the Ultimate Fighting Championship dominating MMA, only one has been generally given favorable reviews from UFC President Dana White.
That one was Strikeforce, run by Scott Coker. But this week, when Coker and Strikeforce acquired the services of top-ranked heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko shortly after he spurned the UFC's offer, White ripped Strikeforce as having made a fatal mistake.
In an interview with FanHouse on Friday, Coker responded to those comments and said he thinks highly of the UFC's business, but that he is confident he made a wise decision by signing Fedor. The interview is below.
'The MMA Hour' Podcast: Fedor to Strikeforce, more
Michael David Smith: How does it feel to be Dana White's newest enemy?
Scott Coker: (Laughs) Well, I was a little surprised. I don't really even know how to respond to that. They have a great business. We have a good business, and we're going to do our own business. We've got big fights coming up next Saturday, we'll focus on that and on Fedor and just move forward.
Let me address with you a few of Dana's specific comments. First, he said, "They have no money" and Fedor will put you out of business. Have you guys extended yourselves too far to sign Fedor?
I can't talk about the deal, but we're comfortable. We're backed by the company that owns the San Jose Sharks, Silicon Valley Sports and Entertainment. We have strong partners. I know sometimes those comments come rolling off the tongue, but if we couldn't do a deal that would work for everybody, including our partners, M-1, we wouldn't do it. It's not like we just said, "Oh, there's Fedor, I'm a fan of Fedor, let's do it."
When I sat down with Vadim Finkelchtein and the M-1 guys, when they were in town for the Affliction fight that didn't happen, they said they had other offers including the UFC, and I said that was fine. I wasn't privy to their conversations with the UFC, but for whatever reason it didn't work out, and they came to us, and it worked out and Fedor will do his thing.
Dana White also said Strikeforce has "no fighters" and he said Fedor's opponents will be "nobodies." Can you assure MMA fans that you're going to put Fedor in the cage with top-notch opponents?
Yes. You're an MMA guy. You know that when Brett Rogers knocked out Andrei Arlovski, he legitimized himself. You know that Alistair Overeem is a great fighter. You know that Fedor has the challenge of fighting in a cage for the first time. Fedor is M-1's champion and Alistair is Strikeforce's champion, and when that fight happens, that will be great. I'd put Alistair up there with anybody, and him and Fedor is going to be a great fight. I look forward to the day when our champion and M-1's champion get in the cage together.
When will Fedor's first Strikeforce fight be, and will it definitely be a title fight? You mentioned that he's M-1's champion. Does that mean he could be in a five-round title fight even if it's not against Overeem?
That's still being negotiated with M-1. But he has agreed to fight, and agreed to fight in the cage -- I was wondering if he'd say he wanted to fight in the ring after seeing how guys like Mirko Cro Cop struggled in the cage. But we'll see about the number of rounds and the opponent in October.
Will Fedor's debut definitely be in October?
October or by mid-November, for sure. And it'll be free with your Showtime subscription, so you don't have to pay $44.95 or $54.95.
Dana calls you guys "a small-town show," and "a little regional show with no one in it." And he said "they should have stayed where they were." Is there some truth to that? Would you be better off staying more regional and not spending the money to get such a well-known international fighter as Fedor?To say Strikeforce on Showtime is regional, that's just not accurate. It's just propaganda. People say what they say. We're just going to move forward. We've been putting on some amazing fights in our four months with Showtime, and we're going to keep getting better. Four or five people were bidding on Fedor's services, and for us to get him, I feel like we hit the lottery.
I know some boxing promoters were interested in signing Fedor, as was the UFC. How did you get him?
I think the biggest thing for M-1 is that they wanted to do a co-promotion, and we were happy to do that, just as we've done co-promotions with other MMA promoters in the past, and just as Oscar De La Hoya and Bob Arum will co-promote a boxing fight.
I will say, it happened quicker than I thought. We talked to them in California, and they told me maybe they'd get back to me in a week, maybe 10 days, maybe two weeks. And then they called me Sunday and said, "Let's go." We got it done Sunday night around midnight.
Do you think the UFC will compete head-to-head with you? Will there be a live UFC show on Spike, or a re-airing of UFC 100 or something, at the same time that you have Fedor's debut on Strikeforce?
They've done that before to our Showtime program, so would that surprise me? No. But you'd have to ask them. I really don't know.
Can you clear up what's going on with your August 15 light heavyweight fight, Gegard Mousasi vs. Babalu Sobral, the fight you picked up from the Affliction show? There have been rumors that the UFC is trying to take legal action to stop that fight from happening. Is there any truth to that?
No. When Affliction sold their business to UFC, or whatever they did -- I'm not sure what the structure was -- they signed over the contracts. But Mousasi never had a contract with Affliction. They only had a bout agreement with Mousasi for that one fight. We've had an agreement for a while now for Mousasi to fight with Strikeforce. And here's another thing I don't understand: Mousasi has a contract with Dream, and a prior commitment to fight with Dream. With the policy that the UFC has, how are they going to let him do that? We're open to that, and that means fans will get to see the best MMA, and fights that wouldn't happen otherwise.
A longer interview with Coker, in which he discusses Strikeforce's plans going forward and the August 15 fight between Gina Carano and Cris Cyborg, will run next week at FanHouse. Follow my MMA Twitter page for updates.
Comments (Page 1 of 3)
dana white lost out. fedor said screw her offer and signed with strikeforce . so dana acts like a little girl and throws a hissy fit because he did'nt get what he wanted . sounds an awful lot like the pansy in the whitehouse not getting his way with his health care reform . the two pansies should get together and share a shirley temple. you know have a " shirley summit" .
wait!! how many times did Coker drop the f-bomb or call the reported a dumb bitch??? he doesnt know how to run a promotion!!
Scott Coker seems to have more class than Dana White, but then, that ain't sayin much.
I blame Fedors mngmnt, they suck and robbed us fans of a incredible fight fedor vs lesner and if anyone is not pissed at that your not a real fan of mma. I dont care of dana or cokehead at strikeforce. Fedor is going to fight in the ufc, its a matter of time, can't wait till SF goes out of business. People should ban together and not watch S..force. I not going to other than when its on youtube. I refuse to see fador fight live after he did not sign. He should of signed just for the the history books
DIAMONDKING, claim to be a huge MMA fan but because you're not happy that Fedor signed elsewhere you're going to boycott Strikeforce.
I call that a hypocrite. You can't be a fan of MMA and say I'm going to boycott this promotion because they went out and signed the biggest name in the world. That's what any organization would do if they could. Since that signing they have Dream join in with them so in one day they became a viable competitor to the UFC.
I don't know about you, but sometimes when I sit down and have a sodie pop with my kids I'll drink a Coke one time, and heaven forbid I'll have Pepsi another time, imagine that I can actually like more than one brand name.
Dana White is acting like a child and no-one wants to ask themselves how many times has this guy publicly dissed Fedor before and after these negotiations. If I were Fedor I'd be thinking do I want to work for this guy?
Strikeforce did what the UFC couldn't and that was let Fedor own himself. I just don't understand all of the hate because he went on his own terms.
Up until two weeks ago Fedor did nothing but fight the consensus number two fighter in the world, when he first fought Tim Sylvia, then Andrei Arlovski and then was lined up to fight Barnett who was ranked number two by WAMMA. Whether you like WAMMA or not they are an independent ranking system and as such don't carry the same bias fans do. So was Fedor ducking anyone? No he wasn't but because someone cheats and brings Affliction down Fedor becomes the most vilified fighter ever by UFC noobs.
I actually love the UFC and it's fighters, I don't like Dana White much as I think he's a terrible example for a CEO, but I'm really starting to hate UFC fans. The more you guys talk the more it's apparent that you are not MMA fans at all, just loyal brand followers.
Of course my last shot really isn't fair to all, because I have read some balanced thoughts from professed UFC fans, it just seems they're in the minority right now.
And you're a troll.
Coker hit it right on the head when he referenced boxing, DeLaHoya and Arum. Intelligent promoters are willing, under mutually beneficial circumstances, to co-promote. The UFC still isn't out of the picture--they could co-promote w/ Strikeforce and have a few fighters cross over. The question is whether they'll have the guts to do it. Not guts as in their fighters losing; more top fighters are in the UFC of course. I mean guts as in being willing to eat their words about Strikeforce and simply respecting their rival. Dana complained a lot about Lesnar's actions after the Mir fight and making him apologize--but here Dana is disrespecting his own opponents in business. Friggin' hypocrite.
the fact that feedor owns a part of M1 presents a conflict of interest. i'm all for fighters as entrepreneurs that own gyms or produce books or dvd's or clothing deals; but, fighting in one's own promotion is unacceptable...at the very least feedor will pick his own fights to pad his record but that type of manipulation might extend to the red devil fighters and could even manifest as fight fixing...not good...not good for the fans and not good for mma.
good point
can u answere my post?
it's a little further down
dick, why would that be anymore of a conflict than a promoter protecting his champion? your arguement of conflict of interest can be applied to all with a financial stake in an organization. a promoter that just signed lesnar for $12M for 5 fights doesnt want him in with a 1 fight co promotion deal with Fedor; conflict? i'd say so.
the only question is are you going to fight the best you can get in front of you.
People,
Its not time for co promotion yet it has not evovle to that yet. A lot of things got to change mma is not ready for that and its not structure for co promotions.
Yes its good for fighters but us as MMA fans should not have to miss good battle because of it.
All coke head did was rob mma fans of a great fight.
i agree with you, also.
can you read my post and let me know what you think.
uhmm, excuse me...
I AM GOING TO KEEP POSTING THIS TILL SOMEONE CAN ANSWERE THIS QUESTION!!!
M-1 CHAMPION?.....M-1 CHAMPION?
yes, overeem is the strikeforce hw champion.
HOWEVER, PLEASE! I AM BEGGING SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME....WHO DID FEDOR BEAT TO BECOME THE M-1 HW CHAMPION? please, tell me the fighter and the event.
as far as i know, it doesn't exist.
yes, fedor was pride hw champion and yes, fedor was/is wamma hw champion.
as far as i know there is no such thing as a m-1 hw champion.
as far as i know, fedor has never even fought on an m-1 global card.
this is the problem with the whole m-1 co-promotion. they've sponsered shows, represented fighters. but they are not a legitmate organisation with titles and fighters ranked with in. what is this a friggin seinfeld episod?
"he's our champion" who did he fight to win it and when. THIS IS A MADE UP TITLE!
oh, on a side note, everyone keeps saying m-1 was the reason both pride and affliction went out of business.....that my friends is just not factual.
they both went out of business for a variety of reasons, least of which had to do with m-1.
just in case, you think i'm anti m-1.
i could care less about m-1, or any of them.
just don't forget dana is not the only a$$hole in town that tries to sell us bullsH!t.
coker is cooking it up pretty steamy here too, saying that their is a m-1 hw champion.
and if fedor wants to wear a made up belt, then F@#k him too. and yes i am a fedor fan.
IF I AM WRONG ABOUT THIS PLEASE INFORM ME.
to: niv, richard, retro, m13,johnnie#5, claytor
to any all posters and even MDS(eventhough, i don't think he even reads these) am i wrong here?
I think for clarification purposes, the M-1 belt is interpreted as the WAMMA belt. M-1 is a promotion, not a full blown organization like Strikeforce or DREAM, or the UFC.
Also, to Diamond, Oscar De La Hoya actually fought for himself while running Golden Boy, and fought top competition, so no, its not entirely a conflict of interest. Fedor built a name for himself globally, and he helped form M-1 to represent himself accordingly. Hed fight anyone on the planet for the right cash, its business, really.
Again, Dana was going to pay Brock more for fighting Fedor, the 6 fight 30 mil contract was revealed as a farce (considering Dana hasnt uttered a peep in response to that truth), business is business, and a guy with 5 fights under his belt in a US run organization doesnt equate to squat compared to the global champ financially.
ay...clearly, feedor bought the title/belt...he is part owner of M1 and can do whatever he wants however he wants...while that may seem to be an existentially pure place to be...in the business world there is a most definite conflict of interest.
claytor,
i'm sorry to me that's crap and it irritates me,
if it's the wamma belt then call it that.
don't try to legitimize who you are by claiming to have a belt that never was.
if wamma is owned by m-1, then they should come out and say that. that all wamma belts are now to be called m-1 belts and that all things regarding wamma are now m-1. i really don't have a problem with that...sort of like when nfl team change their names.
however, it just seems like sf and m-1 are trying to validate m-1 as a credible on their own.
listen, we all know at this point in time fedor is recognized as the best hw on the planet.
i just don't like the fact that this so called co-promotion is starting off, "dog-n-ponyish".
very much like what all the dana bashers claim he does. and yes dana does at times, but don't think things for mma is gonna be great with this type of lieing.
and in reality who cares about the wamma belt anyway, why not just say the last reigning pride hw champion. and i know the ufc probably legally owns the belt. but you can still say it.
let me ask you a final question, what will you say if fedor walks in with both an m-1 belt and the wamma belt?
neozoo, in reply to your post I have to say I have to plead ignorance to Fedor claiming to be the M1 Champ. I decided to go to M1's site and there is absolutely no mention of Fedor being the M1 Champ, but they clearly state he is the WAMMA Champ.
On another note, I found one of the posts above very interesting (sorry I didn't remember the name) but it was about the conflict of interest of Fedor being a co-owner and representing himself in fights making fight fixing a reality.
I was astounded to see that quote as it does make sense, what really got me about that quote is I've stated that many times about our current MMA model especially regarding the UFC.
I've been very much against having a monopoly in this type of sport because as we can clearly see the UFC acts as agent, owner and promoter of all of its fights and has almost complete control over all of its fighters. Being able to see the potential problem with Fedor and not seeing it in regards to the UFC is what blows me away.
This without a doubt is why we need more serious competition for the UFC, this is exactly why WAMMA needs to exist so we can one day see healthy cross promotions where an Undisputed World Champion can be crowned and mainstream casual followers will have an easily identified Champ. This is what's needed for this sport to truly grow beyond the hard core fan.
So everyone can boycott Fedor if they like, but again I don't see how that fits in with being a real fan of the sport.
http://www.m-1global.com/fedor-emelianenko/
Well aside from Coker calling Fedor M1's Champion I haven't seen anyone else say that neozoo.
Does Coker saying that mean he just got mixed up in the moment or is he pulling a fast one on us?
I doubt it very much, I'm sure he meant to say the WAMMA HW Champ but who knows. It's funny the first time I read that it didn't even click in, but again I think getting upset about that statement is much a do about nothing.
It's funny though that M1's own website only refers to Fedor as the last Pride HW Champ and the current WAMMA Champ, so I have to say that M1's claims aren't dubious at all.
Politics Aside who cares about contracts, we as fans are going to get robbed of a historic fight Lesner Vs Fedor. Fedor needed to fight in ufc for the history books theres not history in those other TRIPLE A mma Organizations.
We as fans of MMA need not to pay for fedor fights in Strikeforce. We can force Fedor to come to UFC. Watch it the next day on Youtube.com for free. M-1 and Fedor robbed us of a what could of been one of those heart pounding, exhilarating, hair standing on the back of your neck fights.
I'm f@*!!! ticked of are'nt you people piss off for being played with as fans that he was going to fight in the UFC.
I think he was never going to sign, event if they gave him co promo..., then they would be asking for all of the profits of the UFC. I know this type of hagling of the russians it goes so far that they negotiate until your the complete loser in the negotion and then they'll take the offer. Fedor wasnt going to sign until UFC was his.
I loved Fedor but I have this guy so much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I Got robbed of an incredible fight.
F you FEDOR (LOOK AT THE BIRD)!!!! I hate you Fedor you robbed me and all the MMA fans, and mma fighters of something great.
BOYCOTT FADOR AND STRIKEFORCE UNTIL WE THE FANS GET WHAT BE WANT
FEDOR VS LESNER
I HATE YOU FEDOR YOU DUCKING HISTORY