March 15, 2023 9:30 am ET
SAN JOSE, Calif. – Scott Coker made a play for his pal Luke Rockhold’s companies as soon as once more, however for now the previous champ has gone a unique course.
Coker had Rockhold as a part of his middleweight roster in Strikeforce from 2008-2012, and the Bay Space native received the title in 2011. He defended it twice in 2012 earlier than he went to the UFC after Strikeforce was dissolved.
Rockhold went on to win the UFC’s middleweight title, although he misplaced it in his first tried protection. Rockhold stepped away from the game for greater than three years earlier than he returned this previous August at UFC 278, the place he misplaced a Battle of the Evening resolution to Paulo Costa.
Rockhold introduced his retirement after the combat and was launched from his UFC deal. However already, he wanted to scratch his aggressive itch. Coker stated he had a dialog with Rockhold about coming to Bellator – and thought the promotion was within the operating.
“Luke and I had an amazing dialog in L.A. in the course of the Fedor combat,” Coker stated on the Bellator 292 post-fight information convention this previous Friday in San Jose, Calif. “We had an amazing dialog and we had been going to proceed our dialogue and I used to be hopeful that we’d at the least have one other dialog to see if there was one thing to be accomplished.” As an alternative, Rockhold signed a deal to combat fellow former UFC fighter Mike Perry in a bareknuckle boxing match at BKFC 41 on April 29 in Denver.
It didn’t appear to be Coker has any exhausting emotions, although he would’ve favored to win the Rockhold lottery that few individuals thought could be up for grabs so quickly.
“It looks as if they received a extremely good provide from Bareknuckle, and I don’t blame him,” Coker stated. “He’s a prize fighter and he’s going to go combat. He’s received to feed his household and maintain himself. In order that’s what labored out. Let’s see what occurs. To me, it was slightly little bit of shock. However it is a enterprise. Friendship apart, Luke and I can go and play golf and hang around and have lunch and be boys, however it is a enterprise.”
