UFC
Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker believes Showtime and Zuffa both "want to make a deal"
Oct 14, 2011 - 5:10:50 PM Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker believes Showtime and Zuffa both "want to make a deal"

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

Though the mantra earlier this year was "business as usual" for Strikeforce after being purchased by Zuffa, it's been anything but, with the UFC poaching a number of the organization's top names for fights this fall and winter.

That has led to a widespread belief that Showtime is more than likely not going to be interested in optioning the extension on their television deal with Strikeforce when it expires in February. However, Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker says both sides are negotiating the extension right now, and he still expects something to get done.

"There are negotiations going on to extend the deal, and I believe both sides want to make a deal," Coker said in an interview with MMAjunkie.com. "Both sides have indicated to me that they'd like to stay in this relationship."

"I know that negotiations were ongoing and they were going back and forth. It's like any negotiation. They're trying to come to a deal that makes sense for both parties. The devil's always in the details."

Coker believes one option for getting the deal renewed would be to reduce the number of events the organization runs in 2012. They will have run 16 events in 2011, eight of them being challengers cards, and with less big names to top the "major" events, a shortened schedule could be a solution to continue the deal.

Penick's Analysis: If the deal is extended, Showtime will need to go into it with the understanding that it's a completely different product than they've dealt with to this point. At best, they'll have what is essentially a feeder league to the UFC, but more than likely the roster that's left will be the Challengers series level guys, perhaps the guys that have filled out the main cards in the past. They won't have any of their usual headliners with the Champions being pulled over, and other bigger named fighters on their way to the UFC as well.