Scott Coker | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1962-10-03)October 3, 1962 (age 63)[1] |
| Occupation(s) | Fight Night at the Tech, founder |
| Known for | Strikeforce, founder and CEO Bellator MMA, president |
Scott Coker (born October 3, 1962) is an Americanmixed martial artist,Taekwondoin, former movie stuntman,[2] and combat sports promoter. He is the founder and former CEO of MMA promotionStrikeforce, former president ofBellator MMA, and founder of Fight Night at the Tech.
Scott Coker was born inSeoul in 1962.[3] His father, an American from Tennessee, had arrived in Korea shortly after the Korean War. He met Scott's mother, a Korean, while she was singing at aUSO club. They married in December 1959. When he was approximately 9 years old, Scott and his family relocated to theUnited States, where they settled inSan Jose,California in 1973.[4]
Coker is anErnie Reyes protégé and full-contact fight promoter coveringKickboxing,K-1, andMMA. Coker has obtained an 8th degree black belt inTaekwondo under Reyes and was an original member of the West Coast Demonstration Team. In 1986, Scott Coker became one of the first directors ofISKA.[5]
Coker founded Strikeforce in 1985 as a kickboxing organization.[6]
The promotion held its first MMA event,Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Gracie, on March 10, 2006, at the HP Pavilion inSan Jose, California.[7] Over the next five years, Coker built the brand into the number two mixed martial arts promotion in the United States, partnering with bothShowtime andCBS to televise their events. Strikeforce co-promoted some events withElite Xtreme Combat, or EliteXC.
In March 2011, Strikeforce was purchased byZuffa, LLC.[8] Coker was retained by the company for a contractual period of three years, ending in April 2014.[9]
On June 18, 2014, Coker was announced as the new President ofBellator MMA, replacing founder and CEOBjorn Rebney.[10] Coker was brought in to make it a less tournament-focused promotion. After the selling of promotion in 2024, Coker did not transition with the ownership and resigned as CEO.
In March 2024, four months after Bellator MMA was sold toPFL, Coker announced that he andGilbert Melendez will debut a new MMA event called Fight Night at the Tech, on May 18, 2024.[11]
Coker has participated in various martial arts movies as a fighter, includingDragon Fight,The Last Dragon, andSurf Ninjas.