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Audie Attar has skilled “the great, the unhealthy and the ugly” within the dozen years since he got here into MMA administration with Paradigm Sports activities. He admits that, even to this present day, it’s a continuing studying and self-reflection course of.
Nevertheless, he’s assured his firm is the cream of the crop in relation to giving athletes the most effective illustration.
The roster definitely speaks for itself. No MMA administration agency represents extra present UFC champions than Paradigm. Gentle heavyweight kingpin Jiri Prochazka, middleweight titleholder Israel Adesanya and welterweight champ Leon Edwards sit on the prime of their respective divisions, and Paradigm’s crop of roughly 70 fighters additionally contains the most important star within the sport’s historical past, Conor McGregor, whom Attar helped safe a life-changing deal to box Floyd Mayweather in August 2017.
Attar, who’s the founder and CEO of Paradigm, comes from an athletic background himself as a highschool soccer standout. He’s used his data of sports activities and enterprise to create a administration empire, and the attain of the corporate expands past MMA into soccer, soccer and media personalities, as nicely.
“I feel we’re on monitor,” Attar advised MMA Junkie in regards to the present state of the corporate. “I seemed again on the unique marketing strategy, and there’s lots of people that laughed at me for the way bold it was and specializing in the advocacy that’s in my DNA as a former athlete. I actually needed to struggle for athletes in multiple method, and I felt that it wasn’t simply transactional and being the most effective at school from a administration perspective.
“We’re not solely constructing a tradition of excellence, however a successful tradition, and it’s exhibiting by our onerous work and never solely the outcomes that we’re driving for our purchasers, however even the recruiting that we’re doing and the expertise we’re signing early on. It’s a really thrilling time to be a part of the crew, and we’re very lucky for these athletes to entrust us to be a small a part of their journey and information them to success.”
‘Behind our again they could say some stuff’
Audie Attar, left, and Conor McGregor on the 2020 Grammy Awards on the Staples Middle in Los Angeles. (Picture by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)
Athlete illustration – significantly in MMA – is usually a advanced and troublesome street to navigate. Attar stated he’s discovered that the onerous method at occasions, however in the end his singular mission is to get the most effective alternatives for his purchasers, whether or not it’s inside or exterior of a aggressive setting.
MMA has exploded in publicity and recognition since Attar entered the enterprise greater than a decade in the past. Due to that, the purpose posts are always transferring. Income streams for promoters, be it from broadcast offers to sponsorships and extra, is quickly evolving, which implies there’s extra money concerned within the sport.
For Attar, it’s vital to be diligent about maximizing earnings for every fighter. Which may imply taking onerous stances in relation to contract negotiations with notable organizations like UFC, Bellator, PFL, ONE Championship, and extra.
“As a result of we’ve been such staunch advocates for our athletes, I don’t assume we’re essentially the preferred with the promoters,” Attar stated. “However on the finish of the day, we nonetheless have dialogue, we nonetheless have respect for them. Behind our again they could say some stuff about us, however that simply means we’re doing an excellent job. So long as we’re in a position to deal with issues with a stage of integrity – they could not like us, however I feel they’re going to grasp. I feel these promoters for essentially the most half do care in regards to the sport. Deep down they do care in regards to the athletes, however we could disagree from a enterprise perspective on sure elements not restricted to compensation.”
Securing the most effective compensation for a shopper is in the end an important a part of Attar’s job. And not using a fighters union or collective bargaining in MMA, contract negotiations are dramatically completely different from the likes of the NFL, NBA, NHL or MLB, the place the pay constructions are far more superior.
That makes Attar’s place tougher. Every negotiation differs based mostly on an abundance of things, and Attar stated it’s a complete job to ensure there aren’t any oversights in any deal.
“There’s a variety of enchancment that may very well be had in relation to fighter compensation, advantages, because it pertains to mobility and with the ability to take a look at the market and get honest market worth,” Attar stated. “These are issues we’ve all the time fought for and proceed to struggle for which can be nonetheless there. The reemergence of some opponents is an efficient factor. … UFC remains to be the premier promotion, and that doesn’t appear like it’s going to alter any time quickly, however having these second and third and fourth promotions available in the market place is nice, however they too make use of among the similar methods that forestall a fighter from testing the market. In flip, they’re not any higher, however they declare to be completely different. With that being stated, I feel what all managers ought to do is admittedly proceed to advocate for his or her purchasers and proceed to have troublesome conversations with these promoters.
“I do assume that the promoters over time will respect it. They might not prefer it, however I do know that the true ones, they do care in regards to the fighters, they do care in regards to the sport. It’s not only a enterprise for them. I feel if we’re in a position to have wholesome conversations about uncomfortable topics, it’s solely going to push the envelop additional and permit wholesome success for the promoters and the athletes on the similar time. Rising tides raises all ships in my view, so I feel mangers must be keen to have troublesome conversations about uncomfortable topics within the spirit of athlete advocacy, within the spirit of selling and pushing the game all of us love, whether or not you’re on the promotion aspect or whether or not you’re on the athlete administration aspect.”
Ideas on free company
In 2022, fighter free company is extra important than it’s been at any interval in MMA historical past. The thought of combating to the tip of a contract, be it within the UFC or elsewhere, is way much less international than it was earlier than.
That’s an excellent factor, Attar stated, however it doesn’t all the time imply free company is the most effective path. Non-UFC organizations is likely to be eager to pay sure fighters above their market worth, as a result of that exact fighter may match its wants, however Attar stated that’s not all the time the case. So when advising a fighter in a free-agent scenario, Attar stated it comes all the way down to having the suitable info and data of the panorama.
“We’re lucky that we’ve performed so many offers throughout a number of promotions, so we really feel, and we’ve our personal formulaic strategy to doing our personal, let’s name it ‘contract prep’ headed right into a negotiation,” Attar stated. “When you really feel you’re going to obtain honest market worth with out hitting free company, you then don’t must hit free company. However when you assume your honest market worth is at a sure stage, and also you’re not in a position to obtain that stage throughout the unique negotiation interval, nicely then, you might wish to hit free company.
“I by no means say it’s a one-size-fits-all reply. It’s not. However that could be a true strategy to how I really feel all managers ought to strategy a negotiation with a respective promotion. I feel I see too usually it’s form of a haggling such as you’re at a flee market. It wants extra thought than that. Clearly because the profession is youthful and perhaps the financial indicators aren’t as evident, which means the particular person doesn’t drive pay-per-view buys, important social media analytics, and so on., it could be a shorter analysis and ‘contract prep.’ However nonetheless it ought to require a sure stage of thought, as a result of that is their life that you just’re tasked with representing them.”
A ‘physique of labor actually rooted in advocacy’
Israel Adesanya and Paradigm’s Tim Simpson at UFC 271.
Within the present panorama, some fighters have expressed that illustration will not be wanted. Former UFC champion Dominick Cruz and rising bantamweight star Sean O’Malley are two marquee names over the previous yr who’ve spoken out in claiming that outside management is not essential.
Tim Simpson, who’s the senior vp of Paradigm’s MMA division, stated it’s not that easy. He’s naturally biased given his occupation, however Simpson thinks it behooves any fighter to ensure they’ve somebody who can communicate for his or her finest pursuits.
“It’s unlucky that you just hear that, as a result of fighters undoubtedly want illustration,” Simpson advised MMA Junkie. “The issue with illustration on this trade is that there’s a variety of unhealthy administration. There’s no barrier to entry to be a supervisor. There’s no certification. You don’t want any actual expertise. All it’s a must to say is, ‘That’s my supervisor,’ and now you’re an MMA supervisor. With that comes a variety of low-level illustration. You want the correct folks. Some folks can do it themselves, which is nice for them, however as your model continues to develop you want folks which can be managing your affairs and representing you and advocating for you.”
With regards to pursuing these pursuits, Attar stated there’s nobody doing it higher within the house than Simpson, which is why he inserted him right into a place of energy.
“Tim Simpson, I really feel, is arms down the most effective supervisor in MMA,” Attar stated. “I’ve seen Tim develop tremendously, and the one factor I might keep that basically instilled the extent of religion I’ve in his means is the relentless effort, his pure enterprise acumen, however his curiosity to study and analysis something much more regardless of how a lot he may already find out about one thing. He’s all the time a scholar of the sport. He’s not a know-it-all. Not solely that, however his temperament to roll by the highs and the lows at an excellent keel is superb.”
Though managers in MMA naturally profit from their jobs as a result of they take a proportion of offers from athletes – as an agent would in any state of affairs throughout sports activities or leisure – Attar stated he thinks Paradigm has created a singular and selfless tradition within the house.
Attar sees room for progress in Paradigm’s means to serve its purchasers in MMA and the sports activities panorama as an entire. He stated he’ll ceaselessly stand by his mission assertion to barter the most effective and most becoming offers for any athlete related to his model.
“I feel when you’re in a position to proceed to pound the pavement and present time in your aspect and the physique of labor that’s actually rooted in advocacy,” Attar stated. “It’s by no means been to screw a promoter over. It’s actually simply to maximise an athlete’s profession, as a result of on the finish of the day the athletes danger the whole lot in there. Finally that’s not ceaselessly, so we’d like to ensure they’re protected not simply from a compensation perspective, however in all elements of what we’re making an attempt to push for because it pertains to their advocacy.”
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