An illegal strike cost Paige VanZant a win in her second Power Slap appearance. The former UFC fighter turned…
An illegal strike cost Paige VanZant a win in her second Power Slap appearance.
The former UFC fighter turned BKFC brawler made her second promotional appearance at Power Slap 9 on Thursday inside the Space42 Arena in Abu Dhabi. There, ’12 Gauge’ squared off against Chelsea ‘Mini Mayhem’ Dodson, the wife of former UFC title challenger John Dodson.
Things were all systems go in the opening round with both women eating the other’s offering. However, things drastically changed in the second stanza when VanZant was deducted one point after “clubbing” her opponent.
According to the Power Slap rules, a “club” is defined as “any strike other than a permitted Slap to the permitted target area.”
The third round ended with both competitors landing clean slaps, but the mid-match deduction resulted in a draw with all three judges scoring the bout 28-28.
you haven’t seen the last of paige vanZant in Power Slap
VanZant’s record at the Power Slap podium moved to 1-0-1 after winning her promotional debut against Christine Wolmarans in June.
“Well guys, Power Slap is over,” VanZant said on her Instagram. “Went home with the draw. I accidentally clubbed. That was my fault. Still learning. I was a little bit too close on one of my shots. Just got to get my distance right for the next one. Power Slap, you’re going to see me again” (h/t BJPenn.com).
Dana White’s other promotion, the slap-fighting one, has been a long-running joke in the industry since its release to…
Dana White’s other promotion, the slap-fighting one, has been a long-running joke in the industry since its release to the masses.
Fighters, MMA media, and even fans have witnessed the viral clips of the traumatic knockouts on slap fighters, and it doesn’t really take a doctor to tell that it’s doing massive damage to the participants’ brains.
Even worse, most slap fighters are reportedly only getting paid around $5,000 U.S. dollars per performance. Not much of an incentive to develop CTE and long-term brain damage. But don’t worry. Doctor Dana White is on the prowl and is fighting back against legitimate doctors’ educated opinions.
Dana White scoffs at doctors’ medical opinions that slap fighting is damaging to the brain
“It sounds legit,” Dana White began (speaking with no medical experience or education on record). “They (the actual educated medical professionals) watched one episode of the show? Know nothing about medicals or what we do, or any of the studies we’ve done. It sounds like these typical doctors that look for attention to me.”
That’s right, folks. You heard it from the UFC president himself. Power Slap is on the up and up, capiche? No need to worry about CTE or long-term brain injuries. It’s also not like studies have come out that signal that up to 78% of Power Slap fighters leave with permanent brain damage. All for a measly $5,000, so what’s not to like?
Sadly, it seems as if Dana White won’t abandon his latest dream, and it hurts the heart of a UFC fan when you consider how much is currently going on in the sport that can use some much-needed attention. Resources, time and energy are going into the dangerous brand of Power Slap, and no amount of professional medical opinions will convince the UFC president that this is a sport best left alone.
Skip to (8:57) in the video below to see Dana White’s comments on what Doctors are saying about Power Slap.
Dana White’s other promotion, the slap-fighting one, has been a long-running joke in the industry since its release to…
Dana White’s other promotion, the slap-fighting one, has been a long-running joke in the industry since its release to the masses.
Fighters, MMA media, and even fans have witnessed the viral clips of the traumatic knockouts on slap fighters, and it doesn’t really take a doctor to tell that it’s doing massive damage to the participants’ brains.
Even worse, most slap fighters are reportedly only getting paid around $5,000 U.S. dollars per performance. Not much of an incentive to develop CTE and long-term brain damage. But don’t worry. Doctor Dana White is on the prowl and is fighting back against legitimate doctors’ educated opinions.
Dana White scoffs at doctors’ medical opinions that slap fighting is damaging to the brain
“It sounds legit,” Dana White began (speaking with no medical experience or education on record). “They (the actual educated medical professionals) watched one episode of the show? Know nothing about medicals or what we do, or any of the studies we’ve done. It sounds like these typical doctors that look for attention to me.”
That’s right, folks. You heard it from the UFC president himself. Power Slap is on the up and up, capiche? No need to worry about CTE or long-term brain injuries. It’s also not like studies have come out that signal that up to 78% of Power Slap fighters leave with permanent brain damage. All for a measly $5,000, so what’s not to like?
Sadly, it seems as if Dana White won’t abandon his latest dream, and it hurts the heart of a UFC fan when you consider how much is currently going on in the sport that can use some much-needed attention. Resources, time and energy are going into the dangerous brand of Power Slap, and no amount of professional medical opinions will convince the UFC president that this is a sport best left alone.
Skip to (8:57) in the video below to see Dana White’s comments on what Doctors are saying about Power Slap.
According to a recent study, Power Slap Fighting is even more dangerous than initially thought. A whopping 78% of…
According to a recent study, Power Slap Fighting is even more dangerous than initially thought. A whopping 78% of athletes suffered from likely brain injury.
Power Slap Fighting and Brain Damage
Power Slap is produced and promoted by UFC president Dana White who has been taking constant criticism of the sport since its inception. The University of Pittsburgh and the VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System reviewed footage from the first season of Power Slap and found that 78% of participants displayed at least one sign of a concussion. These signs could include vacant stares, slow movements, coordination issues, and even vomiting or seizures.
The study revealed that of the 333 slaps reviewed, nearly 30% led to visible concussive signs, and 20 participants showed signs of multiple concussions. But this might be part of the appeal, as UFC fighter Donald Cerrone explained in an interview:
“I love it. This is, like, if you just want to watch knockout, knockout, knockout, and hear CTE brain damage, this is the event”
When it first debuted in 2022, Neurologist Dr. Nitin Sethi explained:
“Open-handed slaps delivered with such force to the opponent’s face frequently cause the person’s legs to buckle, at times suffer momentary – sometimes longer – loss of consciousness, and collapse to the floor. These are all concussive injuries of varying duration … In my professional opinion, those who partake in this ‘sport’ will also suffer the stigmata of chronic neurological injuries.”
On the study itself, neurologist Raj Swaroop Lavadi of the University of Pittsburgh said:
“Slap fighting may be entertaining to watch as a lay viewer, but as medical professionals, we found some aspects of the competitions to be quite concerning. Our end goal is to make all professional sports safer for the neurologic health of the athletes. It is really difficult to ban any sport, but it is possible to raise awareness about the associated harms.“
Dana White recently revealed that he has black spots on his brain stemming from his days as a boxer….
Dana White recently revealed that he has black spots on his brain stemming from his days as a boxer.
Also known as brain lesions, black spots can show up on an MRI for a slew of reasons, including stroke, radiation exposure, genetic conditions, seizures, multiple sclerosis, and traumatic brain injuries i.e. concussions. Of course, concussions and other TBIs can be the cause of chronic traumatic encephalopathy.
CTE has been a hot-button issue in combat sports, specifically when speaking about White’s latest pet project, Power Slap. Debuting in January 2023, the maligned slap-fighting league has faced backlash from fans, fighters, and those in the medical field who were quick to call it nothing more than “sanctioned brain trauma.”
For those unfamiliar, Power Slap is a sport where two opponents take turns delivering open-hand slaps until either one person is knocked out or the judges decide whose slaps are more effective. The biggest issue with the so-called sport is that there is no defense involved. Slapees are required to stand there with their hands behind their back and take an uncontested smack from the slapper.
Needless to say, the “sport” has delivered some pretty insane clips on social media that have quickly expanded its popularity. However, with that has come more scrutiny. Still, White has remained a staunch supporter of Power Slap even in the face of his own medical issues.
“I used to box when I was younger,” White told TIME Magazine. “I went in, and I did one of those brain studies. I have black spots all over my brain from what I did. I wouldn’t take back one punch. Not one. The position that I’m in right here, right now, today, I wouldn’t take one punch back because I loved that much.
“And the doctors all talk about, ‘Somebody could die.’ I got news for all the doctors. We’re all gonna die. How do you want to live your life? What do you love, and what are you passionate about?”
Dana White insists power slap is safer than boxing
During the same interview, White tried to explain why he has little concern over the health of his Power Slap competitors compared to those who compete in 10-12 round boxing matches.
“If you look at boxing, right, these guys train and spar for months leading up to a fight, then they go in there, and they fight 12 rounds. You’ve seen the UFC fights, knock-down, drag-’em-out wars. These guys go in and take three slaps or less… We spend the money.
“As long as you know you have two healthy athletes going in to compete, the proper medical attention is there that night, and they get the proper medical attention after, you take a huge portion of the risk out.
Power Slap 9 will head to Abu Dhabi on Thursday, October 24 when super heavyweight champion ‘Da Crazy Hawaiian’ takes on Russian slap-fighting legend ‘Dumpling.’
Dana White believes Power Slap will be bigger than the UFC. Seriously… After another lucrative night of seeing people…
Dana White believes Power Slap will be bigger than the UFC.
Seriously…
After another lucrative night of seeing people slap the sh*t out of each other, the UFC CEO once again touted his maligned pet project as the next big thing in combat sports. Whether or not Power Slap is a legitimate sport varies depending on who you’re talking to, but whatever it is, White believes it’ll be even bigger than the $12 billion promotion he helped build with the Fertittas and a few others.
“I said this will be the biggest sport in the world,” White said during the Power Slap 8 post-fight press conference. “This will be bigger than the UFC. This will be bigger than the UFC. Now you can remember I said that. I’ll see you in a few years and we’ll talk again.”
Paige VanZant makes a memorable power slap debut
White may be a bit overzealous in his comments, but you can’t deny that Power Slap 8 was a banner event for the promotion, namely due to the debut of UFC and BKFC veteran Paige VanZant.
After testing out her skills inside the Octagon, the squared circle, and the boxing ring, ’12 Gauge’ stepped up to the podium inside Fontainebleau Las Vegas and scored her first win in more than five years, dominating South African standout Christine ‘The Edge’ Wolmarans en route to a decisive unanimous decision victory.
During the contest, ‘PVZ’ knocked down her opponent twice while Wolmarans failed to offer anything substantial in return. You can check out all the highlights from VanZant’s Power Slap debut right here.
“Honestly, it was absolutely incredible,” VanZant said in a post-match interview with Charly Arnolt. “Of course, I wanted to knock her out with the first slap, but I’m so happy that it went the way that it did. I knew I could take a punch, I knew I could take a slap. That was really fun.”