The Business of MMA: MMA Inc, Part Two

MMA Inc. client Mark Munoz

The topic of two members of the MMA Inc. family fighting each other comes up — something that could happen in a couple different divisions — and Meyer sums up their feelings the way most fighters summarize their thoughts on fighting a fellow teammate.

“At some point, they may have to fight each other, and it’s not fun for us, but I’ve told Mike before: I want all our guys fighting each other for the title. But at the end of the day, we take no joy in it because somebody has to lose.”

If you can be both hands-on and hands-off at the same time, that’s the easiest way to describe how Roberts and Meyer work with their clients when it comes to the media.

With a roster full of established and emerging stars, interview requests are numerous, and they prefer to be included in the scheduling process, rather than having their clients set things up on their own. But once the appointment is made, you won’t find either of them sitting in on any calls.

“We don’t even micro-manage Chael — imagine that,” Roberts says, the message coming through loud and clear: if we don’t keep tabs on what the most loquacious member of their roster has to say, we’re sure not going to do it with anyone else.

“These guys are their own people, and they understand. We talk and we go over things, but it all goes back to the fact that we only take guys that we trust. If you don’t fit that mark, it’s not going to happen.

“Do guys say stuff that sometimes we wish they wouldn’t? Yeah. Just this morning we went over something I saw that I thought, `why did he do that without talking to me first?’ But at the end of the day, that’s what they do.”

“To Mike’s point,” begins Meyer, “the manager-fighter relationship is one of trust and mutual confidence. If we didn’t have confidence and trust in our guys that they couldn’t conduct themselves appropriately during interviews or be smart enough not to discuss certain topics, than we’d have an issue with that.

“But we’re very fortunate that we’ve got a roster of great guys who are smart, and know how to conduct themselves appropriately. It makes our jobs easier in that regard. We don’t want to ever have to be in a position where we micro-manage what a guy has to say. At that point it becomes artificial.”

Meyer and Roberts are proud of what they’ve built at MMA Inc., as they should be. They’re doing things their own way, with the people they want to work with, and have built an impressive roster in the process.

That roster could have decreased in size recently, but the fact that it didn’t should serves as an indication Meyer and Roberts really do operate by the ideals, values, and practices they’ve discussed over this two-piece feature.

“Last week, Mark Munoz renewed his commitment with our company for another multi-year term,” said Meyer. “Mark could have had any agent in the country right now, and he was being solicited by several, but he didn’t even blink an eye. He chose to stay with us.

“It’s nice having that trust factor between the fighter and the manager. We know our guys are loyal, and in exchange for that loyalty, they expect us to perform, and any one of our guys could tell you this — we take care of our guys.”