Bellator President Scott Coker admits that the five months since the last event promotion have been a unique challenge that he never expected. The global coronavirus pandemic forced Bellator to halt operations, but is now back with a series of events that started on July 24.
Coker told MMA Junkie in April that he expected to see Bellator hosting live events again this month, with a batch of Viacom or CBS in Los Angeles destined to host. However, only the first half of that plan was carried out. With California’s growing COVID-19 cases, Coker settled an agreement with the Mohegan Tribe’s Department of Athletic Regulations and the Mohegan Sun Arena to host multiple live events in Uncasville, Connecticut.
After carefully studying the best plan, Coker was given the green light to move on. Similar to what has been seen in other sports, including the UFC, all operations will be contained in a “bubble” designated exclusively for the people involved in the event.
“We are governed by a group that is a public company and, of course, they will be extremely cautious, as they should, when going back into production not only for Bellator, but also for all their other productions,” Coker told MMA Junkie on Wednesday. “They are going to have their own protocols and systems in place. In fact, we were talking to about four or five commissioners from around the country and we were looking to host in different places. But at the end of the day, the scenario for Mike Mazzulli (chair of the Mohegan Tribe’s Athletic Regulation Department) developed into a really nice bubble.
“Once we get there, you don’t have to go anywhere. You don’t have to leave the area. Once you are there, you are in the sphere of struggle. It is a turnkey operation and Mazzulli and the Mohegan Sun have made it very good for us. “
Coker, as well as another official Bellator member, told MMA Junkie that the exact details of the coronavirus protocols are “confidential and proprietary.” However, Coker was able to give an idea of how everything will unfold. Everyone involved will be evaluated multiple times, and there is a partnership with a laboratory to speed up the results. Coker said all the details have been meticulously planned, adding that Bellator would not return now if he did not have confidence in the system that has been established.
“Health and safety are number 1,” said Coker. “They will all be evaluated and make sure they are not positive before they can book the flight and get on the plane. Then the same when they arrive at the place. The Mohegan Sun is working with the tribe and a testing lab there at a university so that we can get results quickly. There will be tests every day. … We have a plan that we are proud of, and we can implement it to create a very safe environment for our fighters, our commissioners, our staff and we are ready to go. “
Coker confirmed that the Bellator events are official for July 24 and August 7. Reports of additional cards have emerged on August 21 and September 11, which Coker indicated will be finalized imminently. The next series of live shows will air on Paramount, Coker said, and is focused on driving great grades by adding its athletes.
From the viewer’s perspective, Coker said discussions are ongoing regarding changes to the product. He did not rule out the possibility of fueling crowd noise on the broadcast or any other strategy that has been proposed or used in other sports.
Coker’s biggest focus at this point is fights, he said. He admitted that there have been some challenges from a pairing perspective due to travel limitations for the international athletes on the list, but Coker said he is working on solutions. Regardless, it is his expectation to have the most notable names on his cage list in the coming weeks.
“We announced our July 24 event, but we have some great fights to announce soon,” said Coker. “All of our big stars are going to fight in the summer series at Mohegan Sun. We want Ryan Bader to be busy there, we want (Cris) Cyborg to be busy, and we want to make sure that all of our best boys and girls fight. They want to fight, and we want them to fight, and we want our best fighters to compete at Paramount. “
However, Bellator has never been this long without a fight card since its inception in April 2009. Coker wanted the company to come back the right way, he said. Obstacles will surely emerge as the plans come to fruition, but Coker reiterated that he is satisfied with the steps that have been taken and is excited to deliver his product to viewers again.
“It is definitely an interesting time and space,” said Coker. “I would never, ever think in my life that a virus like this would hit as hard as it would hit the world and basically stop live sports as we know it today. People are doing live sports again, and it’s a good thing. I think the Fans will appreciate having more live MMA on TV. It’s going to be great, and it created a win-win to bring back some normality. “
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