Scott Coker Explains Bellator’s “Big Top” Fight Card Strategy

Bellator 138: Kimbo vs. Shamrock was a major success and it has primarily to do with president Scott Coker’s strategy for building fight cards.

When talking to MMAFighting, Coker went into detail about how exactly he manages to build exciting cards that do well and why he has no issue putting on fights like Tito vs. Bonnar and Kimbo vs. Shamrock.

“When I used to watch Bellator before, it just seemed like they would hold tournaments to hold tournaments. So to me, it was, like, you want to throw a tournament? It should be a big tournament. … We got off the tournament wagon and went into superfight mode. I don’t think you should throw fighters into a tournament just so you can fill a tournament.”

“Guys that maybe would have got cut after a couple losses, [the UFC is] holding on to. Hey, that’s fine. Do your thing. How I feel is, Tito vs. Bonnar is like a painting. The canvas is empty. It’s how we paint the picture, that’s what it comes down to. Are we able to paint the picture and make you as the fan tune in? The answer is yes.”

“If we have Kimbo vs. Ken, it’s going to cast a bigger net than ‘this guy vs. this guy’ that only the hardcore fans know. That’s what it is. I don’t mind doing these big fights. The undercard fights will resonate with hardcore fans, and hopefully those eyeballs will become fans of the fighters we’ll put underneath the main event.”

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