Issue 051

June 2009

In this age of equality there is still a surprising number of people within the sport who find the idea of women fighting to be distasteful. Clearly, the sport still needs a little more open-mindedness, especially when you consider the crop of high-quality female fighters out there. In this month’s Top 5, Andrew Garvey takes a brief look at some of the most significant (and entertaining) female fights in recent years. 

1 Debi Purcell vs Christine Van Fleet (Hook n’ Shoot, April 13th 2002) 

A protégée of Brazilian vale tudo and street fighting legend Marco Ruas, Purcell’s destruction of Van Fleet headlined the first ever all-female MMA event in North America. In her second MMA fight, the hard-hitting and photogenic Purcell greatly pleased the 1,500-strong crowd at Evansville, Indiana’s Memorial Coliseum by battering and choking out her opponent. Hook n’ Shoot promoter, Jeff Osborne, has long been a passionate advocate of female MMA and ‘Revolution’ is well-worth tracking down on DVD, for an early (and dominant) appearance by current top female fighter Tara LaRosa, some furiously quick action up and down the show and its sheer historical value.  

2 Megumi Fujii vs Serin Murray (Smackgirl, November 29th 2006) 

Undefeated at 16-0 and widely acknowledged as one of the most gifted female fighters in history, ‘Mega Megu’ is an impossibly skilled grappler and, at a little over 110lb, a very scary fighter. Now in her mid-30s, Fujii has racked up 13 submission victories in her career, 11 of them in the first round. Fujii has also excelled in Sambo, Brazilian jiu-jitsu and the Abu Dhabi grappling competition. Plainly speaking, she’s fantastic at submissions, and few fights better demonstrate this than her 20-second win over Australian kickboxer Serin Murray, a tap-out victory achieved with an unforgettable (and destructive) rolling toehold.

3 Gina Carano vs Julie Kedzie (EliteXC, February 10th 2007)

Of the ten fights on EliteXC’s debut show, only this one prompted a standing ovation from the crowd of over 7,000 fans. Promotional unease about women fighting shortened the match to three, three-minute rounds, but in those nine minutes of action Carano and Kedzie very firmly put female MMA on the sport’s mainstream map. Stunning Muay Thai stylist Carano took the stubborn Kedzie apart on their feet, surviving on the mat against an opponent with better grappling skill. Where the fight really won-over the crowd were the closing moments as they brawled to the bell and then hugged like long-lost friends. With this performance, Carano earned the unanimous decision and her position as the ‘face of female MMA’.  

4 Shayna Baszler vs ‘Tama Chan’ (ShoXC, April 5th 2008)

It’s become a cliché that women in MMA have to be twice as entertainingly aggressive as the men to get the respect they deserve. While there’s clearly truth to that, the division has also been heavily influenced by longtime female MMA advocate, top-ten heavyweight fighter and trainer, Josh Barnett. Acutely aware of the role entertainment plays in MMA, Barnett has passed that attitude on to his trainees. A perfect example is Baszler’s joyously fun fight with the colorful Tama Chan. Clocking in at a mere 2:05, this one featured Baszler throwing some heavy leather, a picture-perfect German suplex and finishing it with one of the rarest submissions in MMA: The twister.

5 Shayna Baszler vs Cristiane ‘Cyborg’ Santos (EliteXC, July 26th 2008)

Just like their male counterparts, female fighters are capable of handing out some ferocious punishment in the ring or the cage. But few are capable of the kind of red mist, smashing-your-opponent-into-the-middle-of-next-week animalistic rage as the 23-year-old ‘Cyborg’. The wife of tattooed brawler Evangelista ‘Cyborg’ Santos, Cristiane’s style invites comparisons to her husband. In this, her breakout performance, Cyborg evaded Baszler’s submissions chiefly by punching her in the face. Unleashing hell in the decisive second round, Cyborg smashed away at Baszler, who crumbled under the attack. Santos began celebrating her win before the referee had a chance to even intervene, jumping up onto the top of the fence. After some confusion, the fight restarted and Santos hammered Baszler to defeat, the final shot dropping her like a sack of potatoes. A fearsome woman.