Noons opens up men vs. women debate in MMA

Noons opens up men vs. women debate in MMA

Look out Dana White. Here comes a doozy. This one has to get a response. Strikeforce lightweight K.J. Noons says Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos could compete in the WEC's featherweight division. From Sherdog.com:

"I believe (male vs. female fights) wouldn’t be that competitive, but every now and then there is a special athletic woman that can compete with men in fighting," said Noons. "I believe Cris is one of them. Can she be competitive if she fought in the WEC? Yes, she could. Would she be champ? If I knew the answer to that, I’d be a billionaire and I wouldn’t be fighting."

Outlandish? Who knows. If Noons is telling the truth this could open up a whole new can of worms. Is there anywhere in the world that would actually entertain the thought of a male versus female fight? Would you want to see it?

"When I see her fight other guys, she’s usually beating them up or manhandling them," [Noons] said. "When I spar with her, we’re just working; I’m giving her work. When she goes full speed on me, she definitely has the power of a man. She throws like a 145-pound man."

Power is one thing. The bigger factor in fighting is speed and agility. Could Cyborg defend herself against a 145-pound or would it be target practice?

Trainer Eric Del Fierro has been working with Cyborg a few times a week in the San Diego area. He rains on the parade a bit.

"She’s agile, but she’s still a female. There’s still a big difference. They don’t have that natural testosterone production that men have. Men are built more for strength and there’s just a big gap between the two," [said Del Fierro. ...]

"She could go in there and do well against some of those guys, but there’s still a big difference between men and women and the dynamics of their own strength levels and agility. She doesn’t have the foundation of wrestling that some of the guys have in that division. There’s no way you could throw her against Urijah Faber Jose Aldo and expect her to do great."

There really is no sport, period, where women compete anywhere near their top-level male counterparts. So why would it be different in fighting?

The best thing women's fighting can do is to show a little patience as the sport catches up to Cyborg. It would also be nice for the promotion to stop recycling the same fighters and take part in actually cultivating some new prospects and future stars.

Malin Akerman
Mila Kunis
Eliza Dushku
Adriana Lima