Strikeforce boss hits back at White’s claims

Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker has hit back at comments made by UFC President Dana White.

White claimed Strikeforce will be put out of business, following the signing of top-ranked heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko, as ‘they have no money’.

Coker told MMA FanHouse: “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.”

Tags: Dana White, Fedor Emelianenko, Strikeforce, UFC