MMA Gender Wars – Why No One Wins
MMA Gender Wars – Why No One Wins
Tennis, NASCAR, and even battles of the mind have been successfully played out between men and women. But pitting a man and woman against each other in a MMA ring is whole different ballgame, one that’s destined to fail. The idea simply has too many factors working against it, including an unknown outcome to the Gender Wars MMA matchup that was reportedly scheduled to go down in Russia on Jan. 12, 2018.
Planned Gender Wars MMA Bout a Flop?
Did the planned Gender Wars MMA bout actually happen? Don’t expect to find the answer online, as even the Facebook page promoting the match is eerily silent. Lots of hoopla swirled around the planned event, where Tess Barrall was chosen as the woman to take on “Trent” with a $1 million purse at stake.
The event was to have no live audience and only be available through pay-per-view. Special features promised things like naked ring card women and skits. One more rule: the man is not allowed to strike the woman. And the results are nowhere to be found.
Physical Differences
For any sporting event to be truly fair and worthwhile, the contenders have to be on equal ground. That’s not the case for MMA based on the physical differences between men and women alone. Women’s average height is around 63 inches, average weight around 166 pounds. Men’s average height hits around 69 inches and average weight around 195 pounds.
In addition to size, their bodies are built and wired differently. They have different weight distributions, attainable muscle, and overall shape. Women’s bodies have been shown to be more susceptible in some areas, such as the negative effects of smoking. Each gender likewise has its own set of physiological weaknesses and strengths that just don’t match up in the MMA ring.
Notice the immediate rule that the man is not allowed to strike the woman, another testament to unequal ground from the get-go.
Contact Sport
Sports where gender wars work are those that don’t involve any contact between the contenders. Tennis works. NASCAR works. MMA doesn’t. Non-contact sports have a greater emphasis on the skill of the competitors with a lesser emphasis on the size and build of the body behind it.
Fairness (or Lack Thereof) Would Foul the Results
If the woman wins a Gender Wars MMA match, there may be whispers that the guy went easy on her. It also opens the risk of women in MMA not being taken seriously, as they should be when they’re matched up against compatible contenders.
If the man loses, he’ll be forever known in MMA circles as the guy who lost to a woman. If he wins, he’s likely to face loads of criticism. Either way, there’s no victory to be had.
MMA is open to both men and women contenders, which is fantastic as long as the competition remains fairly matched. Even the healthiest, strongest woman, who quits smoking in favor of vaping Black Note, will only find that fair match against someone who shares her strengths and overall physique.
Staging a mixed gender MMA fight does not do anyone proud. It instead transforms the sport from a thrilling competition into an attention-seeking gimmick, much along the same lines as the naked ring card women.
