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Bellator President Unsure About Promoting Chuck Liddell vs. Tito Ortiz Trilogy

Bellator President Scott Coker is not against a trilogy fight between MMA legends Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz, however, he’s not sure that Bellator will be able to promote it. Liddell and Ortiz, who fought in 2004 and 2006 under the UFC banner, have been going back and forth lately over social media, with Ortiz […]

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Bellator President Scott Coker is not against a trilogy fight between MMA legends Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz, however, he’s not sure that Bellator will be able to promote it.

Liddell and Ortiz, who fought in 2004 and 2006 under the UFC banner, have been going back and forth lately over social media, with Ortiz recently relenting and saying he’d be interested in the fight.

Coker believes Liddell is still under contract with the UFC, which could be problematic for Bellator in putting the bout together (MMA Fighting):

“My understanding is that Chuck is still under contract with the UFC. I’m not sure. I just thought that to be true. I don’t know the details, but when he retired, I think the contract freezes and they maintain some rights.”

“Listen, is it a fight that would be fun to watch? I think if they both pass a physical and Tito was healthy and his neck was healthy and he was able to perform at a high level, and they were fighting, to me is it interesting? I would definitely watch it. But would we promote it? I don’t think we can, because Chuck is still under contract with the UFC.”

Liddell defeated Ortiz both times they fought, the first time by first-round knockout and the next by third-round TKO.

The two were supposed to fight again back in 2010 after they coached opposite each other on The Ultimate Fighter, but Ortiz pulled out with a neck injury and was replaced by Rich Franklin. Franklin knocked Liddell out at UFC 115, and that’s the last time we saw “The Iceman” in action.

On top of that, Coker says the promotion is quite preoccupied hosting its’ Heavyweight Grand Prix, which just advanced its next semifinalist in Matt Mitrione following his win over Roy “Big Country” Nelson last weekend.

“Right now, we’re extremely busy with our World Grand Prix. We’ve got a great tournament going and we have some exciting things you’re gonna hear about in the next couple weeks. I think we’re gonna focus, keep our head down and keep doing what we’re doing and focus on these great events that we’re doing.”

Do you have any interest in a trilogy fight between “The Iceman” and “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy”?

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Scott Coker: Chuck Liddell is Still Under UFC Contract

It may be time to pump the brakes on Chuck Liddell vs. Tito Ortiz III. Ortiz created a bit of a stir when he said a third bout with “The Iceman” interests him. He also claims Liddell couldn’t get medical cleared for a third bout when …

Scott Coker Explains Why Heavyweight Tournament Is Perfect For Fedor Emelianenko

Bellator MMA is gearing up for their upcoming heavyweight title tournament. The promotion will host an eight-man heavyweight tournament known as the Bellator MMA World Grand Prix 2018. The winner of this tournament will earn the vacant Bellator title. Bellator has been without a heavyweight champion since the title was vacated by then-champ Vitaly Minakov […]

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Bellator MMA is gearing up for their upcoming heavyweight title tournament.

The promotion will host an eight-man heavyweight tournament known as the Bellator MMA World Grand Prix 2018. The winner of this tournament will earn the vacant Bellator title.

Bellator has been without a heavyweight champion since the title was vacated by then-champ Vitaly Minakov after Bellator decided to strip him of it in May of 2016 for failing to defend the title.

MMA Legend Fedor Emelianenko will compete in the tournament, and his first round bout will be against former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir. Emelianenko is coming off a knockout loss to Matt Mitrione in Bellator’s inaugural event in New York City last year.

Bellator President Scott Coker thinks this tournament is the perfect setting for the MMA Legend. He made it known during a recent interview with Kevin Iole. Coker explained why he thinks this by stating that it’s due to the competitors Fedor is slated to face if he advances through the tournament.

“When you talk about heavyweights, like with Mitrione, they both punch each other in the face, knock each other down, Mitrione got up a little faster . . . and then he finished Fedor,” said Coker (transcript courtesy of MMA Fighting). “But it could easily went the other way. Yes, guys that are fighting into their thirties should not be fighting 21-year-old kids like he was doing in the past but this is the perfect tournament for him.

“He wanted to come in. He said to me – through Jerry, the translator – I know that this is the fourth quarter for me and I want to compete, and I would love to be Bellator’s heavyweight world champion. When Fedor asks you that, what are you gonna do? Are you gonna say no? You have to say yes so we did and we gave him that respect and he’s gonna have an equal shot just like everybody else.”

“If you look at him and Frank Mir, Frank Mir’s coming off some losses, Fedor’s coming off some losses. This is kind of an equal fight in my mind and it’s gonna be great.”

Emelianenko found success in Pride and is arguably the greatest heavyweight fighter of all-time. However, over the past few years, he has landed on tough times. He retired back in 2012 but came back three years later.

“I believe that he hasn’t decided yet but I wouldn’t be surprised if he fought the tournament out and won the tournament, that he would retire the tournament champion and the heavyweight champion,” said Coker. “What a way to have a great send off.

“Or if he loses the first fight to Frank Mir and gets stopped, he might call it a day too.”

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Scott Coker: Bellator GP Tournament May be the Last of Fedor Emelianenko

Bellator President Scott Coker would not be surprised if MMA legend Fedor Emelianenko went as far as to retire as champion of the upcoming heavyweight Grand Prix tournament. On the other hand, if the Russian were to bow out in the first round, that may…

‘Big’ John McCarthy Joins Bellator Commentary Team

Now that Jimmy Smith has departed from Bellator MMA, the promotion has officially announced who will be serving as the color commentator for their first event of the new year. The promotion announced on Tuesday morning via a press release that they have come to an agreement with longtime referee John McCarthy to serve as the […]

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Now that Jimmy Smith has departed from Bellator MMA, the promotion has officially announced who will be serving as the color commentator for their first event of the new year.

The promotion announced on Tuesday morning via a press release that they have come to an agreement with longtime referee John McCarthy to serve as the color commentator. His first time on the team will be at Bellator 192.

According to the release, he will also “provide a unique level of first-hand insight to the plethora of original content” produced by their digital team.

It was also announced that former UFC title contender and current Bellator star Chael Sonnen had signed an extension with the promotion to remain a part of select broadcasts. Sonnen and McCarthy will split events.

Bellator 192 is set to take place on Saturday, January 20, 2018, at The Forum in Inglewood, California.

The preliminary card will air online at 6:00 pm EST while the main card will air on Paramount Network at 8:00 PM EST.

Douglas Lima defends the welterweight title against Rory MacDonald in the main event while Quinton “Rampage” Jackson vs. Sonnen in a Heavyweight Grand Prix Quarter Final bout will serve as the co-main event.

Rounding out the main card is Michael Chandler vs. Goiti Yamauchi in a lightweight bout, Georgi Karakhanyan vs. Henry Corrales in a featherweight bout and Aaron Pico vs. Shane Kruchten in a featherweight bout.

“With the addition of ‘Big’ John to our broadcast team, we have put together the premier group of MMA commentators ahead of our Jan. 20 debut on the Paramount Network,” Bellator President Scott Coker said.

“With John and Chael providing analysis, you’re getting two people who have spent more time in the cage than they have spent with a headset on, and that will translate to a positive viewing experience for Bellator fans.”

“I first want to say how grateful I am for the opportunity I have been given to work with the incredible team Bellator has assembled. It is always so hard to leave something you love, but I have always wanted to step away based on my terms rather than someone else’s. My goals are to work as hard as I can to meet the expectations everyone will have for me and to hopefully someday exceed them.” McCarthy said.

“I cannot think of anyone I would rather be working with than Scott Coker. Scott has always been a person I admire because of his honesty, loyalty and love for the martial arts. I want to thank everyone from Bellator and Viacom for the trust you are bestowing upon me to keep the commentating of Bellator MMA at the highest levels of the sport.”

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TUF 26 Finale Ratings Deliver Lowest-Watched UFC Live Show Ever

The UFC and Bellator MMA went up against each other on Friday night. It shouldn’t be a huge surprise to see that both events turned out poorly in the ratings. What’s interesting is that the two promotions held events on the same night, with the women’s flyweight championship fight as the main event of the […]

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The UFC and Bellator MMA went up against each other on Friday night. It shouldn’t be a huge surprise to see that both events turned out poorly in the ratings.

What’s interesting is that the two promotions held events on the same night, with the women’s flyweight championship fight as the main event of the UFC’s TUF 26 Finale.

At the end of the day for the UFC, just because you put a title on the line doesn’t mean that fight fans will tune in if they don’t care about the fighters who are competing for the title.

The ratings are out, and here they are. The TUF 26 Finale, which was headlined by Nicco Montaño becoming the first women’s flyweight champion in history with a five-round decision over Roxanne Modafferi, pulled 501,000 viewers on FOX Sports 1.

This marks the lowest-rated primetime live UFC show ever on the network. By looking at the history books, the previous event to draw the lowest ratings on the network was a July 13, 2016, show headlined by Tony Ferguson vs. Lando Vannata that did 609,000 viewers.

The event peaked in its viewership for the main event after 1 a.m. in the closing rounds at 566,000 viewers.

The prelims averaged 361,000 viewers and had an additional 3,569 viewers streaming during an average minute. The previous low for prelims in 2017 was 453,000.

On the flip side, Bellator 189 took place in Thackerville, Oklahoma and was headlined by Julia Budd retaining her featherweight title over Arlene Blencowe. That event did 439,000 viewers, which would be the third lowest for a primetime show since Bellator has been on Spike.

UFC 218 went down on Saturday night, and the prelims pulled in 694,000 viewers. The preliminary card featured one of the year’s best fights with Yancy Medeiros’ win over Alex Oliveira.

However, it marked the fourth-lowest prelims before a pay-per-view event of the year. The Medeiros vs. Oliveira fight peaked the number at 841,000 viewers.

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