The explosion of NIL offers — identify, picture and likeness rights — utterly modified the panorama of sports activities endorsements perpetually. For the primary time, school athletes like these enjoying soccer began getting paid alongside the faculties that reaped the advantages of their skills with huge broadcast rights offers value billions.
However NIL offers have reached additional than simply athletes in school; there are actually high-schoolers and even youthful athletes signing comparable offers. Again in February, 13-year-old McKenna “Mak” Whitham grew to become the youngest athlete to ever signal with Nike when she inked a NIL take care of the powerhouse firm.
So it solely made sense {that a} prodigy in wrestling, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and MMA would search out comparable alternatives, which is how 13-year-old Talon Worden obtained related with Iridium Sports activities Company, an organization recognized for representing fighters reminiscent of ex-UFC champ Brandon Moreno, Bobby Inexperienced, and one other teen sensation in Raul Rosas Jr.
Worden’s father, Joe, who’s a veteran of the Marines and a longtime MMA coach in his personal proper, says he felt like teaming up with an precise agent working in fight sports activities can be one of the simplest ways to search out alternatives for his son.
“As a dad, reaching out to endorsements or sponsors or, ‘Hey, are you able to assist us right here, are you able to do that or try this?’ — each dad thinks they’ve obtained the following LeBron James or Tiger Woods,” Joe Worden advised MMA Combating. “All people thinks their child is the perfect on the market.
“I didn’t need to come off because the dad asking for stuff and they might be like, ‘We’ve simply obtained one other dad out right here.’ So after we spoke to [Iridium founder Jason House], I used to be like, you understand what? I’ll allow you to guys do the footwork and that’s sort of the place we went from there.”
As a result of NIL offers have grow to be such a profitable enterprise, it’s virtually irresponsible to not discover these choices, however as a lot consideration as his signing acquired, the child on the heart of all of it by no means overpassed what was most vital to him — and that’s successful.
Talon Worden began coaching Brazilian jiu-jitsu when he was solely 4 years previous. When he turned 6, Worden began wrestling, and by 10 or 11 years of age, he was competing in youth MMA tournaments.
Over the previous couple years, Worden has earned a ton of reward for his rising listing of wrestling accolades. A fast look at his TrackWrestling profile — a website that tracks youth wrestling outcomes — reveals Worden has amassed a ridiculous résumé stuffed with greater than a dozen first-place finishes in competitions simply over the previous yr.
As a lot as he loves wrestling, Worden nonetheless favors MMA over every part else he does for one quite simple motive.
“I like MMA essentially the most simply because I can do every part that I do know in it,” he advised MMA Combating. “I’m not attempting to sound cocky or something, however as a result of I do know wrestling and jiu-jitsu, I can play all these into MMA. I’ve a bit of bit to select from every part that I really like do.”
Listening to {that a} 13-year-old child is competing in MMA could sound stunning, which is why his father is fast to level out the foundations put in place to guard younger individuals within the sport.
“There’s no head strikes till you’re 18 years previous,” Joe mentioned. “It’s really safer than doing kickboxing or boxing, the place you’re taking head strike after head strike after head strike. In [youth] MMA, there is no such thing as a head putting. So you may strike from the neck down, after which as soon as it goes to the bottom, wrestling and jiu-jitsu comes into play, however there is no such thing as a head strikes. So these youngsters are usually not getting mind harm at 13 years previous.
“As a dad, as a coach, as a Marine, I’m not going to place my child on the market to get mind harm. I’d a lot quite see him do the MMA stuff — he’s executed kickboxing and I mentioned we weren’t going to be doing that once more as a result of he’s too younger to be hit within the head with boxing gloves and kicked within the head. That’s why we stayed with MMA, as a result of I don’t have to fret about him getting knocked out or getting concussions.”
On Saturday, Worden competes within the GAMMA (World Affiliation of Combined Martial Arts) Youth Nationals in Milwaukee, the place he seeks so as to add one other title to his report. At 13, Worden has already picked up extra trophies and gold medals than most athletes might probably win throughout a lifetime, however he’s not slowing down any time quickly.
Continued success at that stage undoubtedly places a number of stress and expectations on a child not even sufficiently old to drive a automobile but, however his father says every part Talon does is just as a result of he desires to do it.
Joe Worden insists that if his son awakened tomorrow and determined he needed to surrender each athletic endeavor and simply deal with college, he would assist that call.
“If he quits tomorrow, that’s his selection,” Joe mentioned. “None of us are pushing this. He’s simply discovered one thing that he actually does like. There’s been occasions the place I’m like, ‘Can I take the night time off?’ I work all day, decide him up from follow, I’m like, ‘Can we simply take the night time off?’ And he says, ‘No, I’m good, let’s go, my opponent isn’t taking a time without work.’”
Along with wrestling, MMA, and grappling competitions, Worden additionally performs full again and center linebacker for his college’s soccer staff. At 6-foot-tall and 170 kilos as a 13-year-old, he has the scale to play a bodily recreation and hopes to transition to quarterback subsequent season. He additionally runs observe within the springtime.
With all these numerous sports activities, tournaments, and competitions — which included touring to 14 totally different nations over the previous yr and a half — how does Worden handle his schoolwork? Nicely, simply tack that onto his rising listing of accomplishments as Talon maintains an ideal straight ‘A’ common, though he shrugs his shoulders when he experiences his lowest grade this previous yr was a 92 — which remains to be an ‘A.’
Contemplating he’s signed with a outstanding MMA company and he’s tearing by means of wrestling and MMA tournaments seemingly on a weekly foundation, Worden’s future in fight sports activities seems to be set in stone, however he really has different ambitions in thoughts.
In truth, simply listening to him rattle off the issues he desires to do earlier than retiring — sure, a 13-year-old child is already mapping out his whole plan for the longer term — he’s not placing his deal with anybody aim simply but.
“I’d completely like to go to West Level for faculty,” Talon mentioned. “I’ve been working to go there for the reason that time I used to be little. I need to go to the UFC someday. GAMMA, which is the youth MMA I combat for, they simply obtained represented by the IOC (Worldwide Olympic Committee) so that they’re pondering it is perhaps within the 2028 Olympics, which I’ll nonetheless be younger sufficient to compete. So if I might compete in MMA within the Olympics, I’d love to try this.
“You possibly can’t do that perpetually, so after I do retire, I wish to grow to be a bodily therapist or a sports activities rehab physician.”
For all of the awards Talon has captured, his dad and mom admit that they’re much more involved with elevating a very good child.
“We have been on the Tulsa Kickoff and he received the Tulsa Kickoff, and I obtained a message from any person from California that mentioned, ‘It goes with out saying how good of an athlete your child was, he received the entire thing, however the factor that obtained me was he was all the time on the mat aspect, cheering for any person he already beat or giving them a pep speak,’” Joe mentioned.
There’s no telling precisely what Talon Worden does subsequent, however there’s clearly a number of potential there. That’s why Iridium’s Home signed to characterize him and assist his dad and mom navigate the brand new market of NIL offers accessible for his or her son.
“We have been very intrigued when the Worden household first contacted us about probably representing Talon,” Home advised MMA Combating. “It was apparent instantly that Talon is extraordinarily dedicated to his college and coaching. Joe has a ton of expertise in fight sports activities and growing expertise himself. Talon is younger, however we’re very excited to assist guild him by means of the NIL course of and ultimately into the world {of professional} MMA.”
Talon could also be getting a number of consideration for somebody his age, however that’s nothing new to him. After successful a number of tournaments in a row, he suffered a nasty loss after which dropped a second straight match that knocked him out of the competitors, and Talon acknowledged he let the stress get to him. Ever since that second, he’s stored his sole deal with the duty in entrance of him and doesn’t take into consideration anything till that job is finished.
That in all probability explains why his lofty future ambitions aren’t a distraction however quite only a device he makes use of to maintain his eyes continually on the prize.
“I’m going by the phrase ‘one match at a time,’” Talon mentioned. “I don’t stay up for see who I’d be wrestling subsequent. I don’t try this. Whoever I’ll wrestle, I’ll wrestle. Whoever I combat, I’ll combat. If individuals collect round to observe, individuals will collect round to observe. It doesn’t matter what occurs, I’m nonetheless going to must go.”