Scott Coker is recharged, reassembled and ready to launch his next big MMA venture

NAPA, Calif. — “I’m back.”

That’s the message Scott Coker posted to Instagram, an unmistakable nod to Michael Jordan’s famous two-word fax announcing his 1995 return to the NBA.

The comparison isn’t much of a stretch. Like Jordan, Coker is coming off a lengthy hiatus — nearly three years away from large-scale MMA promotion — and like Jordan, he’s returning with something to prove.

The former Strikeforce and Bellator CEO confirmed in May that a new organization is in the works. And at 63, the San Jose native says the time away did exactly what he needed it to do.
“It [Bellator] was taxing. I just wanted to relax and rest, and that’s what I did,” Coker said. “I recharged my batteries, and I said, ‘Gil, I want to do Fight Night, because our local Bay Area talent needs somewhere to continue to compete.'”

It’s a full-circle moment for a promoter whose fingerprints are all over the sport’s modern history. Coker built Strikeforce into a promotion strong enough to force the UFC’s hand in the early 2000s, then spent nearly a decade steering Bellator through a global expansion. Whatever comes next, the industry will be watching closely.

Getting the Band Back Together

Coker isn’t doing this alone. He’s reunited with longtime matchmaker and executive Rich Chou, and the two have spent recent months scouting talent hotbeds around the world — first in France, most recently in Japan — to lay the groundwork for the new promotion.

“The band’s back together,” Coker said. “I always believe there’s so much talent out there. When I was in France last week with Rich, we went to these gyms and they’ve just got some killers over there. The talent pool is unbelievable.”

Coker likened the current MMA boom in Europe to the sport’s early explosion in the United States, back when The Ultimate Fighter first introduced the UFC to a mainstream audience.
“There’s a lot of fights going on over there — very busy,” Coker said. “It kind of reminds me of a throwback, like 20 years ago, to how the USA was.”

Home Turf: San Jose Is Back on the Map

For Bay Area fight fans, the most nostalgic part of Coker’s return may be geographic. San Jose was Strikeforce’s fortress, host to some of the promotion’s biggest nights — Fedor Emelianenko vs. Fabricio Werdum, Gina Carano vs. Cris Cyborg, and the Gilbert Melendez–Josh Thomson trilogy among them.

Coker had already launched grassroots “Fight Night” events to keep the regional pipeline alive without the commitment of a full-scale promotion. Now, he confirmed, marquee cards are officially back on the calendar for San Jose.

“San Jose is my home, man. We’re going to bring big fights there,” Coker said. “UFC has Las Vegas — we built and did the big fights here too. I feel like Gilbert [Melendez] is ready, I’m ready, my partners are ready. We’re ready for the next mission.”

The Grassroots Playbook
The biggest open question is who, exactly, will fight for the new promotion. Coker and Chou have alluded to their travels in search of the sport’s next wave of talent.

Coker says the approach will mirror the ground-up model that built Strikeforce and Bellator into launching pads for names like Daniel Cormier, Ronda Rousey, Luke Rockhold, AJ McKee and Usman Nurmagomedov.

“When Bob Cook, Javier or Rich say, ‘You’ve got to sign this kid,’ we sign,” Coker said, laughing. “I don’t even ask — just give me the pen. We’re going to sign this guy.”

Both Strikeforce and Bellator were also known for giving veteran fighters a second act — Corey Anderson and Benson Henderson among them after their UFC runs. But Coker made clear the new venture’s early focus will be on unearthed talent rather than established names.

What’s Next: A Global First Quarter
Coker is keeping the promotion’s name and roster under wraps for now, but he did offer a broad outline of the launch.

The new organization is targeting a first quarter of 2027 packed with events across multiple regions: Asia, Europe, USA (Specifically San Jose,CA) & an international territory to be announced

The full reveal is coming sooner than that: Coker confirmed a press conference will be held on September 14, with further details expected at that time.