Coker: No fighter is out of our price range

[Wild]

http://www.mmafighting.com/2015/1/21...ks-vs-aoki-mma

Coker on the free agent market today:
"There's going to be free agent who come up time to time. It's going to be our job to build these fighters from the ground up that we have, and keep building them and keep building them. What a great platform we have with Spike TV to keep building these new stars."

"It kinda reminds me of Strikeforce, really. We bought a few free agents. It's not just us going after them. Believe me, they're calling us. This is not a one-way street where we're just going after fighters. We're going to win some. We're going to lose some. That's just how the nature of this beast is going to be."

"If you're a free agent out there or you're going to become a free agent, you're going to talk to everybody. You're going to want to use your leverage to get the best deal you can. We're in a position now with the Viacom ownership group, there's not going to be any fighter that's out of the price range."

"If we feel the deal's right and the fighter's right, we're going to do it."

 

[ThatOneDude]

yesssssssssssssssssssssssss

 

[Shy Guy]

I love it. I think Bellator is going to have a really strong future.


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[ThatOneDude]

Strikeforce 2.0

 

[Wild]

Coker is such a stud. BLAF could learn a thing or two from him in my opinion...you don't have to be "built like a fighter" and cuss like a sailor, to be respected and do business in MMA.

 

[Ministry of Silly Walks]

Coker is such a stud. BLAF could learn a thing or two from him in my opinion...you don't have to be "built like a fighter" and cuss like a sailor, to be respected and do business in MMA.

yep. fighters like coker.

 

[Freddy Retro]

This is 100% bullshit.
If he has money to burn then why did he have to empty his whole roster to make room for Gynecomastia Bonnar and Gimpass Ortiz. Look at who he doesn't have... Rampage, Alvarez, Riggs... Everybody that they had a prayer of actually promoting. He has completely embraced the BS freak show garbage moving forward.

 

[Freddy Retro]

Ortiz and Bonnar can always be written off as UFC rejects. They are not promotable in any meaningful way.

 

[Wild]

This is 100% bullshit.
If he has money to burn then why did he have to empty his whole roster to make room for Gynecomastia Bonnar and Gimpass Ortiz. Look at who he doesn't have... Rampage, Alvarez, Riggs... Everybody that they had a prayer of actually promoting. He has completely embraced the BS freak show garbage moving forward.

What's wrong with putting on some freak show fights (ala the PRIDE model) with guys that have a following, and bring eyes to the promotion? Not every Bellator fight is a freak show...just enough to keep people talking, which is what Bellator needs at the moment.

 

[Shy Guy]

This is 100% bullshit.
If he has money to burn then why did he have to empty his whole roster to make room for Gynecomastia Bonnar and Gimpass Ortiz. Look at who he doesn't have... Rampage, Alvarez, Riggs... Everybody that they had a prayer of actually promoting. He has completely embraced the BS freak show garbage moving forward.

I look at it differently. Since they aren't running as many shows they had to trim some fat from the roster. As far as Rampage and Alvarez go, they were going to leave and there is nothing he could have done about it. That damage was done prior to Coker joining Bellator.

As far as freak show fights go, it's smart because it works. Tito vs. Bonnar was the highest rated show in company history, iirc. I wouldn't even call them freak show fights. He is just signing guys with names that will draw..


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[Angler Larry]

I look at it differently. Since they aren't running as any shows they had to trim some fat from the roster. As far as Rampage and Alvarez go, they were going to leave and there is nothing he could have done about it. That damage was done prior to Coker joining Bellator.

As far as freak show fights go, it's smart because it works. Tito vs. Bonnar was the highest rated show in company history, iirc. I wouldn't even call them freak show fights. He is just signing guys with names that will draw..


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that's short term thinking. They're damaging their legitimacy at the same time the UFC is. They operate very similarly. Same pay model for fighters. Same exclusivity. And now they feature over-the-hill UFC rejects as their cash cows. It's not a winning formula.

 

[Ministry of Silly Walks]

thy're starting late compared to the ufc, so they are trying to get the viewers right now, and are using well known names in mma to do it. they're trying to build new stars through their promoting, but it takes a while when the ufc only fans don't know their fighters. rampage ended his own contract since coker couldn't get things going right away for him, and he let alvarez out of his contract because he was so tired of bellator due to bjorn. it will take scott a while to turn the promotion around from where it was headed, but as some ufc contracts run out, i think we'll see more fighters heading to bellator.

 

[Freddy Retro]

If you're saying that you thing ufc contracted guys would like more freedom... I'm sure that's true. The contracts, which are in violation of the Ali Act and the UFC actively lobbies to keep legal, do not allow you to leave on a high note.

 

[Freddy Retro]

I'm not about to give UFC a piece of my DJ game. Where I fucking slay mass pussy.

fuck that. Lol.

 

[Angler Larry]

Don't tread on me, brah.

 

[Wild]

I'm not about to give UFC a piece of my DJ game. Where I fucking slay mass pussy.

fuck that. Lol.

 

[dacofty]

Well im glad to see Coker is about to go after UFC guys who hate the reeshit deal. I'm sure there's quite a few that will change promotons soon

 

[Wild]

Well im glad to see Coker is about to go after UFC guys who hate the reeshit deal. I'm sure there's quite a few that will change promotons soon

IF...they can get out of their contracts.

 

[Ministry of Silly Walks]

IF...they can get out of their contracts.

even if the ufc manages to hold onto them, the bids will drive up the fighters pay.

 

[Wild]

even if the ufc manages to hold onto them, the bids will drive up the fighters pay.

And that is a WONDERFUL thing.

 

[psychicdeath]

There is a big difference between having the assets to pay top dollar for some big names, and being able to do so while still turning a profit. The past decade or so is littered with defunct organizations who tried this: EliteXC, Affliction, Bodog, and to some extent, Stkeforce. Bellator has big money behind it with Viacom, but hiw long will Viacom execs be willing to let it hemorrhage money if the new, improved Bellator doesn't show a profit quckly? So far, the big names signed have been UFC castoffs. If you're trying to conpete with the UFC in 2015 by having Tito Ortiz and Kimbo Skice as your big draws, my guess would be losing your shirt.

 

[Ministry of Silly Walks]

we'll know more about the future when we see the offers for contracts after the reebok deal starts up. imo this is what coker is waiting for. he will pick up some good fighters that are hurt by this deal, and just sick of the ufc in general.

 

[ThatOneDude]

This year is going to be very very interesting

 

[Splinty]

I'm not about to give UFC a piece of my DJ game. Where I fucking slay mass pussy.

fuck that. Lol.

This is one of the greatest statements I've read out of context in a long time.