Scott Coker: Valerie Loureda will ‘get it together’ following first pro loss at Bellator 259

Bellator MMA

Scott Coker doesn’t believe Valerie Loureda’s stock took a big hit following her first pro loss Friday night.

In the main card opener of Bellator 259 event at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., Loureda dropped a unanimous decision to promotional newcomer Hannah Guy. Both Loureda and Guy now have matching 3-1 records.

Following the event, Coker spoke with reporters and was asked about Loureda’s stock following the loss. After speaking with American Top Team head man Dan Lambert, the Bellator president is confident the 22-year-old Loureda will bounce back.

“I was talking to Dan, because she’s out at ATT in Florida, and he said, ‘Hey, she’s young, she’ll rebound, she’ll work on her ground game and she’ll eventually put it all together,’” Coker said. “She’s got time and I know that, especially with what Dan’s been telling me, he says, ‘Scott, this girl is in the gym and she’s throwing bombs at people. She wants to fight everybody all the time.’

“So she’s got that spirit but it’s just putting more of those pieces together, those transitional elements of MMA and she’ll get it together.”

After a 3-0 start to her Bellator run, which included TKO wins over Colby Fletcher and Tara Graff, Loureda will now go back to the drawing board. “Master” has quickly become one of the promotion’s young stars.

With a lifelong martial arts background, along with being nowhere near her athletic prime, Coker believes that it’s way too soon to begin to write off Loureda as she still has plenty of room to evolve.

“The one thing you have to remember about Valerie is she’s still a young fighter,” Coker said. “She only has, what, four fights? Talk to me when she has 10, 11, 12 fights and we’ll have a better picture of that.”