Outside Source
Welterweight contender Ian Garry announced that he has signed with Matchroom Talent Agency, the company run by Hearn, ahead of his title shot against Islam Makhachev at UFC 330 on Aug. 15.
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“Congratulations Matchroom Talent Agency you’ve signed the future,” Garry wrote on Instagram. “I’m excited to announce Team Future just got bigger. Alongside Vayner Sports, I’ll be joining The Matchroom Talent Agency – who will now work across my commercial interests.”
Earlier this year, UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall signed with Matchroom. The deals differ in the fact that Garry’s agreement is only for marketing and commercial; the Irishman is still represented by Vayner Sports for management. Aspinall, meanwhile, is represented by Matchroom in all aspects of his career. In recent months, Hearn has engaged in a bitter feud with UFC CEO Dana White, as the two men often trade jabs online and in interviews.
“Our relationship is different from Tom’s in that we were a lot more strategic with Tom the UFC side now,” Hearn said on “The Ariel Helwani Show.” “With Ian, this is comercially. This is about building his brand and driving revenue to him with partners. This is purely to work on his profile and his commercial brand. We’re really, really pleased to do it.”
Garry has won 10 of his 11 UFC appearances and is coming off back-to-back triumphs over Belal Muhammad and Carlos Prates. According to Hearn, Garry is a valuable addition to his agency for myriad reasons.
Superstar Attributes
“We’re a sports agency. We’re looking to represent high-profile, global stars across sport and entertainment, not MMA,” Hearn said. “But of all the approaches that we’ve had, and I don’t think Ian was an approach, I’ve actually reached out to him because I know his team and everybody around him. I look at this guy for a long time, and I love his spirit. I love his personality. He’s a good looking, tall guy who speaks incredibly well. I long felt this guy has the attributes to be a superstar.
“As I learned more about the sport, how good he is, we met, we had a lot of good, deep conversations and talked a lot of strategy. He then of course finally secured the fight and particularly with our work in understanding the country, the audience, and how passionate they are for their own, I just felt this was the guy that we wanted to bring to the team.”
This article first appeared at Recent News on Sherdog.com
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