Leslie Smith asked Kobe Bryant about 'extremely important' union at UFC Athlete Retreat

Attempts to have MMA fighters collectively form together into a union or association have gone almost entirely unsuccessful in recent years. Several different groups have put a foot forward with hopes of changing the landscape of the sport, but to no avail.

The MMA Athletes Association was essentially DOA. The Professional Fighters Association fizzled after a few months of ruffling feathers. And the Mixed Martial Arts Fighters Association, which is arguably the most promising attempt, is continuing to make inroads at a slow pace.

One of the constants throughout the process of trying to bring fighters together has been UFC women’s bantamweight Leslie Smith (9-7-1 MMA, 3-3 UFC), who has never made any bones about her strong pro-union beliefs.

So when Smith was presented the opportunity to make a statement regarding unions during a Q&A session with retired NBA superstar Kobe Bryant at this past weekend’s 2017 UFC Athlete Retreat in Las Vegas, she stood up and asked what no one else did.

“I’m very curious: How essential to your personal negotiations and the success of basketball in the world do you believe a players association has been?” Smith asked Bryant. “We’re on the verge of forming a union here, so I was wondering here, some of us are on the fence about how much do we pay in, or worried about rocking the boat. How significant to you and your career, and basketball in the world, do you feel like the unity of the players represented by the association has been?”

Smith’s question, which mustered excitement and applause from some surrounding fighters, was fielded honestly by Bryant, who spent 20 years in the NBA working alongside the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA).

Although Bryant isn’t privy to the ins and outs of what it would take to actually bring a union or association for fighters into reality, he does know how having one in basketball aided his own career. The landscape of professional basketball and MMA are mostly incomparable, but Bryant said finding a way to come together and create a collective voice should be an essential priority.

“(A union is) extremely important,” Bryant said. “Even us as players, where we have our union meetings and things of that nature, we’re normally at each other’s throats competing against each other. But we understand completely that a rising tide raises all boats.

“When you guys have this unity and you guys are operating together on the same page together, it does nothing but simply fortify the sport, make the sport better. Not just for present, but for future generations that are coming. So it’s extremely important.”

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