ROH has a very powerful entity that owns it in Sinclair Broadcast Group, but they're hands-off.
Even though ROH provides a good chunk of content for SBG stations, they're usually left to their own devices, says company COO Joe Koff. When speaking to Fightful about how much input Ring of Honor gets from their parent company, he was very candid about it.
"We get very little," said Koff. "We?re an operating unit of the company. They have a lot of confidence in what we do. We rely a lot on their support systems. I will tell you that I don?t believe Ring of Honor could not nearly be where it is without the distribution that [Sinclair Broadcast Group] affords us. Just recently we started airing on our 21 regional sports networks that were purchased two or three months ago. That addition and that additional reached really, really helps. We?re on our emerging networks like Charge! and we?re on Stadium. So, being apart of Sinclair really, really helps us to expand that brand. But, we?re a business and we?re responsible for the business. The nice thing about working for our company, and it?s a fantastic company to work for because it?s innovative creative. Is that it?s ours to run and ours to manage. It works perfectly like that."
With All Elite Wrestling entering the fold -- and pulling plenty of ROH talent with it, a talent war of sorts has started. Thus, prices expand and inflate. Koff admitted that sometimes that requires a company to overpay.
"Listen, in any kind of business when there?s competition, prices usually go up. When there?s no competition, prices usually go down. That?s just strictly economics. But, you mentioned Slex and you mentioned Adam Brooks who are going to be featured in the Anniversary Show. We?ve done a very good job of bringing international talent over because there?s a lot of great talent and the talent that we bring in, and Dan Maff has been with Ring of Honor years and years ago, so he?s familiar with it. We wrestle a special brand and a special style and it?s not only in the ring. It?s in their minds. It?s in their DNA," Koff said.
Despite constant revolving doors as far as talent go, the company itself as a necessity both for them and the wrestlers.
"When we?re able to find a Session Moth Martinez, she?s fantastic by the way, and Nicole Savoy as well. I?m hesitant to start naming specific people because I can?t name them all. Then everyone starts thinks that, ?Oh my God, why didn?t he name me?? I love everybody on my staff. They all fit perfectly ?cause that?s one of the questions: How do we know? Well, we know by their work ethic to begin with. We know when they walk into a locker room the vibe that they put off and the vibe that?s felt. We?re pretty good at identifying who the right talent is for Ring of Honor and yes, I think it it?s constant. We?re no different than any other sports team that has a core of key players that stay and then you kind of full in around it. Free agency here, free agency there, move to NXT, move to AEW. It?s part of our business and the business is healthy right now. Because the business is healthy right now it?s also probably priced at a higher level. So, it?s a very good time to be a wrestler," he said.