At 1 p.m. ET, UFC Chairman and CEO Lorenzo Fertitta and UFC President Dana White will participate in a media conference call to discuss Zuffa’s purchase of promotional rival Strikeforce. Bloody Elbow will provide live updates from the call. You can also follow Mike Fagan for updates on Twitter.
While Dana White told Ariel Helwani that Strikeforce will operate with “business as usual,” many questions remain. Is the Strikeforce World Heavyweight Grand Prix still a focus? What will happen to the women’s divisions? Will any Strikeforce fighters make the jump to the UFC within the next year? Will Strikeforce be kept around for the long haul? Will it be rebranded as a feeder league? Or will Zuffa dissolve the organization when its deal with Showtime expires?
In addition, Paul Daley, banned from the UFC for a sucker punch he threw at Josh Koscheck at UFC 113, has hinted at pulling out of his April 9th main event date with Nick Diaz. Is that a concern for the new ownership?
[UPDATES] via @Mike_Fagan_13:
– Scott Coker: “This is a historical day for the sport of MMA.”
– “Silicon Valley Sports & Entertainment wanted to get back to their core business (hockey). I wanted to stick around in MMA.”
– “We have around 140 fighters under contract in Strikeforce.”
– “HWGP delay had more to do with finding the right location for the fight. This deal had nothing to do with it.”
– “I think fans are eventually going to get to see the fights they want to see.”
– “We had booking approval for guys with non-exclusive contracts.”
– “Fedor fights for Strikeforce. Fedor fights on Showtime. I can’t get into the specifics.”– Dana White: “Right now, we’re looking to run Strikeforce on Showtime. Business as usual.”
– “I’ll never say never to anything, but right now Strikeforce will continue to run on Showtime. Showtime runs the production for Strikeforce. There’s things we can do to help out, but they’re running production.”
– “There’s always going to be competition. We’re just looking to expand and grow the business. We need more fighters.”
– “I wouldn’t count anything out with regards to fighters crossing over. As of now, we’re keeping things separate, but it’s a work in progress.”
– “There are a lot of people who aren’t big fans of mine, but we can still do business.” (Re: Barnett, Daley)
– “All you have to do is have some money and some big balls to get into the MMA business.”
– “My thoughts on women MMA is the same. That’s Scott’s deal, not mine.”
– “We’re open to the idea of the HWGP final being on PPV.”
– “We have the largest MMA video library in the world.”
– “A fighter’s union is up to the fighters. The problem is that this isn’t a team sport. Guys at the top might not want to kick money down to the guys at the bottom.”
– White dodges a question about multiple champions in each weight class.– Lorenzo Fertitta: “It’s a positive for the fighters to work for Zuffa. We have vast resources and will honor contracts.”
– “There are plenty of promoters around the world for fighters.”
– “We haven’t had a chance to meet with Showtime yet. Strikeforce still has a contract for 16 fights with Showtime. If Showtime is interest in something beyond that, we’re interested.”
– “So far, we have not been able to do a deal with a network that makes sense for us.”
– “Strikeforce will continue to use the hexagon. Strike WILL ADOPT the Unified Rules. Elbows on the ground will be allowed in Strikeforce.”
– “Showtime contracts runs through 2014. Showtime controls production which includes announcers, etc. We’ll offer input, but that’s all.”
– “We put this together in short order, and we don’t have all the answers yet.”
– “It’s important for fighters to remain professional. We’re honoring our side of contracts.”
– “There’s a lot of “unfinished business” over in Strikeforce with regards to matchups.”
– “We’re not worried about opening ourselves up to anti-trust suits. There are 1000s of other promotions.”
– “Scott does not have an equity stake in Zuffa.”
– “We started talks in mid-December.”