Strikeforce CEO on Cris "Cyborg" Santos negotiations: No deal but "we're dancing"




DALLAS – Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos, who's arguably the top female fighter in MMA today, still is without a contract.

The management team for Strikeforce current women's middleweight champion hasn't been able to strike a new deal with company officials.

Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) he has no updates on the negotiations, but he's optimistic a deal will get done and the 145-pound champ will be back in the cage.

"The answer's no," Coker said when asked if there's any type of contract-status update. "But hopefully soon we'll come to some type of resolution."

Santos hasn't fought since she beat down Jan Finney in a title defense a year ago. It marked the Brazilian's 10th consecutive victory, which included a title win over Gina Carano and a title defense over Marloes Coenen. But because of a contractual quirk (Strikeforce acquired her deal from the now-defunct EliteXC), Santos actually fulfilled the terms of her contact with the Finney fight.

She now needs a new deal. At today's pre-event press conference for Saturday's "Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum" event, Coker told MMAjunkie.com the situation isn't unlike those with other fighters.

"It comes down to business," he said. "It's probably happened with every single guy in this room at one point or another. It maybe just was under the radar and they weren't talking to the media like 'Cyborg' did. But I don't blame her. She was frustrated, and we were frustrated.

"But there's a certain dance the promoter and the athlete do. ... And we're dancing."

Santos, whose value and pound-for-pound ranking was aided by Japanese star Megumi Fujii's recent Bellator loss, is one of the main cogs of Strikeforce's women's MMA division. Some thought that division might collapse with the UFC's recent acquisition of Strikeforce, but Coker again assured fans that's not the case. Even if UFC officials aren't completely sold on women's MMA, Strikeforce is.

In fact, Coker said, Showtime – which has garnered some ratings hits due its female fights – has pushed harder than anyone for the bookings. That's set the stage for a June 24 prospects bout between Julia Budd and Germaine de Randamie, a July 22 fight between ex-champ Sarah Kaufman and highly touted Liz Carmouche, and a heavily anticipated July 30 title fight between women's welterweight (135-pound) champ Marloes Coenen and Miesha Tate.

Additionally, Carano, one of the organization's biggest draws, had a featured slot on Saturday's card before her doctor denied her medical clearance. Coker hopes she'll return later this year and continue Strikeforce's efforts with women's MMA.

"Nothing has changed," Coker said. "It goes beyond just me being a fan. We have a network that loves female fights. ... Believe me, they're going to want those fights, and we're going to continue putting them on."


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