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 The upstart new fight organization, SM Fight Liiga based out of Helsinki, has had a solid start to their emergence into the MMA discussion.
Having now held their first two events, with another two booked for later this year, the fresh organization devoted to delivering the best possible homegrown martial arts experience to Finland has accomplished good things, but owner Billy Talent has now illusions about what comes next.
"Ultimately, we've had a good start in our eyes, not making any money, but getting our name out there and showing that we plan on putting on good fights and giving fighters a quality option outside of the likes of the GAMMA, the SMASH, and the other big time organizations currently in the market." Talent stated in a video interview earlier this week.
"The biggest issue we face right now is signing fighters. Many managers have had long standing relationships with more established organizations, and as a result they tend to funnel their talent in one direction. Fortunately we have seen a few more managers see that there is a very bright future in front of us, and as we continue to grow, we hope there will be a correlation in fighters who see us as a viable option."
Talent isn't wrong; at a time where quality fighters are hard to come by, and most managers seem content in going with the status quo, SMFL is not the only organization facing these challenges. However, when an organization hasn't established or planned for championship matches to crown their first title holders - as SMFL hasn't - it can be a weary sign to new athletes.
"Totally understandable," Talent responded with sincere enthusiasm. "But we don't want to just hand our titles away. Titles mean something, and they need to be earned. There will be a time, and we believe it's coming fairly soon, where we are going to have to start booking those fights. Likely starting around our 5th event we think, but nothing is set in stone. We have to build the foundation before we hang the pictures over the mantle."
SMFL is a restricted organization, only signing fighters registered with an MMAT ID of 384K or higher, but is welcome to signing fighters up to 387500 and possibly higher.
"We know the need for fighters to get even matchups, and we don't plan on throwing young, fresh guys to the wolves. That doesn't help them, it doesn't help us, and we really want to see our roster grow. We feel what we offer is a great opportunity for that.
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