Obscures Profound Exploitation, Inequality – The Rise Of Female UFC Fighters
The mixed martial arts pay-per-view event UFC 261 features two bouts that would have been unheard of just 10 years ago.
Russian-born Valentina Shevchenko will fight Jessica Andrade, a Brazilian and an out lesbian, for the women’s flyweight title on April 24, 2021. That same night, Rose Namajunas, an American of Lithuanian descent, will square off against Zhang Weili, who has caused the popularity of the UFC to surge in her native China, for the women’s strawweight title.
The rise of women in mixed martial arts – which the late Sen. John McCain once derided as “human cockfighting” – is remarkable, and reflects the diversity and global appeal of the sport.
But as I write in my new book, “Fighting Visibility: Sports Women and Female Athletes in the UFC,” it’s important for fans and spectat...