Strikeforce in the hunt for Fedor
STRIKEFORCE IN THE RUNNING FOR FEDOR Scott Coker is one of several promoters in dialogue with Fedor Emelianenko and his…
STRIKEFORCE IN THE RUNNING FOR FEDOR
Scott Coker is one of several promoters in dialogue with Fedor Emelianenko and his partners at M-1 Global.
The CEO of Strikeforce recently returned from a vacation in Italy to find Emelianenko a sudden free agent after the collapse of Affliction. His own event, Carano vs. Cyborg on Aug. 15, had encountered a few hiccups as well with injuries and drop-offs, but he is happy with the almost-finalized product.
Coker said talks with the top-ranked heavyweight were among several he had with Affliction fighters – most of whom were under non-exclusive contracts – when all indications were that the promotion would cease promoting after Trilogy.
He added recent talks with M-1 have been positive, though details of the discussions remained general.
We’ve had a good conversation about the strengths of what we do, and what we can offer, said Coker. They had the meeting (Tuesday) with the UFC, and they’re going to meet with a couple boxing promoters that have been calling up. You can imagine… he’s like the hot free agent.
Emelianenko and his team could not reach agreement on a UFC deal, which was reported to be near completion Tuesday, said M-1 partner Vadim Finkelchtein, though there was no definitive halt to future negotiations.