Scott Coker doesn’t have any intention of letting Cris Cyborg slip away if he can help it.
Cyborg is one of the most accomplished fighters in MMA history, and the current Bellator women’s featherweight champion. However, her contract with the promotion recently expired, meaning that soon, she will once again become one of the biggest free agents in the sport.
Coker hopes it won’t come to that, because the promotion is still very much interested in working with her.
“She’s actually in the matching period of her contract, but she and I have a very good relationship, and I told her, ‘Go train and do your fight and [everything] during this period of time, and when you come back from Brazil, let’s sit down and make a deal,’” Coker told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour. “I have every intention to have her on our roster, it’s just we have to sit down and hammer out the deal.
“That’s something I feel we will get done when she gets back from Brazil, I think in the middle of the month. But I feel the relationship is solid, and we’ll be in the Cyborg business for many years to come.”
Cyborg has been similarly complimentary of Bellator. Arriving in the organization in 2020, she’s been fairly active, winning the title from Julia Budd in her debut and defending it four times.
However, with only six women in its featherweight division, Cyborg has already been forced to defend her belt in a rematch, raising the question of new matchups they can offer. There’s the oft-discussed bout with Cat Zingano, but with Cyborg wanting to fight three times a year, it may be hard for Bellator to fill that request.
For his part, Coker acknowledges the leanness at featherweight is a real problem, but with Cyborg making her professional boxing debut earlier this month and stating an interest in continuing pursuing that avenue as well, the Bellator CEO believes he and Cyborg can come to an agreement that will best serve her interests.
“There’s a couple girls out there, Leah McCourt being one, but in the past we’ve had to revisit some fights and run it back,” Coker said when asked about rematches for Cyborg. “When you look at Arlene Blencowe’s fight against Cyborg, the second fight was really good, better than the first fight. So to me, there might be some rematches . … There’s Amanda Nunes and the UFC, there’s Kayla [Harrison], there’s Cyborg, and then there’s a handful of girls, but it’s not a weight class where there’s a lot of really high, high-level, like 20 fighters sitting out there waiting to step up. It’s a handful of girls that can really fight at this level.
“So it is tough, but I think she likes boxing, I think she wants to continue boxing. At some point, we’ll sit down and have that conversation, but to me if she wants to box and fight MMA, I think we can keep her busy in both of those arenas where it would be worth it to her.”
Lack of exclusivity is becoming a bit of a calling card for Bellator. Historically, the organization has co-promoted with RIZIN for cards, and recently Coker allowed Michael “Venom” Page to face Mike Perry in BKFC. With the PFL open to co-promotion with Bellator to make the much-hyped superfight between Cyborg and Kayla Harrison, perhaps Coker can offer Cyborg the best deal to finish out her combat sports career.
Between Boxing And OnlyFans I wish them luck
It all depends on Kayla and cross promotion. There’s just no competition
damn she gets no glove love
Scott Coker Confident About Securing Cris Cyborg’s Future In Bellator
Bellator
During a recent interview with The MMA Hour, Coker gave his thoughts on Cyborg’s standing with Bellator.
“She is actually in the matching period of her contract. But her and I have a very good relationship,” Coker said of Cyborg. “I told her, ‘Go train, do your (boxing) fight.’ … I said, ‘Look, when you come back from Brazil, let’s sit down and make a deal.’ I have every intention to have her on our roster. It’s just we gotta sit down and hammer out the deal. That’s something I feel we’ll get done here when she gets back from Brazil… I feel like the relationship is solid and we’ll be in the Cyborg business for many years to come.”
Cyborg left the UFC following a tumultuous end to her relationship with UFC President Dana White. After her last UFC win over Felicia Spencer at UFC 240, she signed with Bellator and immediately challenged for the women’s featherweight belt.
The 37-year-old Cyborg has accomplished many feats during her time in MMA, and Coker envisions Cyborg adding to her legacy and remaining in Bellator for the foreseeable future.
Bellator Women’s Featherweight Champion Cris Cyborg has given an update on her current contractual status and the likelihood of her re-signing with the Scott Coker-led promotion.
Cyborg, widely regarded as one of the greatest female mixed martial artists of all time, has maintained her reputation in the sport since departing the UFC in 2019, winning all five of her subsequent outings in the Bellator cage.
After the first, a fourth-round TKO win over Julia Budd, saw her collect the 145-pound gold, the Brazilian has gone on to defend the strap four times. As well as beating away the challenges of Sinead Kavanagh and Leslie Smith, Cyborg has gotten the better of Arlene Blencowe twice, most recently this past April.
Since Bellator 279, Cyborg has been absent from the cage, instead fulfilling her dream of competing in boxing — a luxury afforded to her by the MMA promotion she’s called home for three years.
Having made a successful debut in the sport a few months back, outpointing former Brazilian national boxing champion Simone Aparecida da Silva at Fight Music Show 2, Cyborg will get here second dose of action this weekend.
On the undercard of Terence Crawford’s championship fight against David Avanesyan, Cyborg will share the ring with former Bellator fighter Gabrielle Holloway.
Saturday’s contest will mark Cyborg’s second since she last competed in steel surroundings. Despite that, though, mixed martial arts remains the veteran featherweight’s priority, and a sport she’s excited to return to next year.
The question is, will that be under the Bellator banner? Coker, the promotion’s president, seems to think so.
This past September, he confirmed that Cyborg had entered the matching period of her contract, meaning she’s free to discuss deals elsewhere. He did, however, insist that Bellator remains committed to having the MMA great on its roster.
That’s a sentiment Cyborg has now confirmed that she shares.
Cyborg Enthusiastic About Likely Bellator Stay
During a recent interview with ESPN MMA’s Marc Raimondi, Cyborg assessed her future plans once she’s completed her sophomore boxing appearance this weekend in Omaha, Nebraska.
Having dedicated months to honing her skills in the ring, Cyborg said she’ll be returning to MMA training soon. And in terms of her future in the sport, the Brazilian firmly sees it playing out alongside Coker as part of Bellator.
“After this fight, I’m back on MMA training. For sure, I want to do both together… But number one, for me, is MMA,” Cyborg said. “Yes, (I’m still a free agent). But I love working with Scott Coker. Let’s see. I believe we’ll be working together (still). I have a nice relationship (with him). He’s not just my boss, we’re partners… He respects me.”
Perhaps hammering home her desire to stay put, Cyborg also outlined the expectation that she’ll defend her belt again in 2023, naming Cat Zingano as the likely next challenger.
“Alpha” staked her claim for a shot this past July by outpointing Pam Sorenson, a result that marked her third success in a row. While Zingano has claimed to have been “guaranteed” a championship opportunity within the next three months, Cyborg expects the bout to go down next summer.
“I have my title and I’m getting ready to defend. I believe the next one is supposed to be Cat Zingano. She really needs to stop running and accept fight,” Cyborg asserted. “Then let’s see… She’s a great match. Everyone knows who she is; big name…. I believe it’s going to be (in the) summer.”