With the greater sports world focusing on Colin Kaepernick’s National Anthem protest, it’s time to ask why combat sports have remained relatively quiet on these racial protest?
Let’s first highlight what make combat sports special. Combat sports (boxing, MMA & pro wrestling) were built on the back of working men, immigrants and minorities.
Before pro wrestling was a billion dollar business it began as a part of traveling circuses. The cast-offs and commoners turned to wrestling as a form of cheap entertainment and those who participated in the ring were far from privileged. Boxing dates back to Roman times, where the slaves were made to fight to the death as entertainment for the wealthy. It then saw an uptick in the late 1700s, when prize fighting became part of the English culture.
MMA is a new term for an old concept. The best fighters from respected regions and disciplines gather to test their skills and collect a prize. The UFC almost went bankrupt because people couldn’t grasp the idea of such a violent sport but it was those that had no options outside of fighting that kept the company afloat and carried it to the $4Billion company we see today.
We highlight the history of these sports because without knowing where they began it’d be irresponsible to ask current athletes to stand up for present day issues.
Combat sports have always provided the oppressed, downtrodden or discriminated a mainstream voice. The fighters and performers that competed not only cared about bettering their own lives but those in similarly poor situations.
Have fighters forgotten that Muhammad Ali stood for civil rights and refused induction into the United States Army? Did they forget the race riots after Jack Johnson defeated James J. Jeffries in 1910 and that Johnson himself was arrested under the Mann Act for marrying a white woman? Or that Viro Small, the first known black pro wrestling champion, was born a slave and had to fight for his freedom and right to travel with professional wrestlers? Maybe they never knew about Mitsuyo Maeda’s foreign art of jiu-do (early jiu-jitsu) being dismissed in country after country because of his Japanese decent.
The roots of combat sports are steeped in protest and fighting for relevancy, so why haven’t we heard from prominent combat sports athletes about the National Anthem protest?
We aren’t looking for them to follow Kaepernick’s exact form of protest but spreading the discussion surrounding the protest is not too much to ask. In fact, the conversation that has grown from Colin’s protest has been a bright spot in sports and social commentary. No longer can people claim they are unaffected or unaware of the ills that plague the minorities and impoverished in the United States. If ignorance was once an excuse for racism, it’s being chipped away by every athlete, journalist and analyst discussing the issues highlighted by the protest.
We are simply asking fighters and sports entertainers to grab an ax and start swinging.
With that being said, there have been a few athletes that have spoken up about social issues. Current welterweight champion Tyron Woodley was vocal about last year’s racial tension in Ferguson, Missouri and a few boxers wore ‘I Can’t Breathe’ shirts to a press conference two years ago but recently there’s been silence.
We’ve seen athletes in other major sports kneel during the anthem, discuss Kaepernick’s protest and share their own thoughts on racial injustices in our country. Combat sports is slowly dragging behind the pack, muzzle on and neutered.
It makes us wonder if the financial structure of combat sports have silenced some of the larger stars? The business still revolves around selling PPVs and network subscriptions, which means fighters’ salaries are directly effected by their popularity.
One thing has been proven, standing with Kaepernick’s stance is far from popular.
The Broncos’ Brandon Marshall lost 2 sponsorships for kneeling during the anthem on opening day of the NFL season and others have been quietly shunned by corporate America. Are boxers, MMA fighters and pro wrestlers afraid that speaking on the protest or showing a sign of solidarity will ruin their brand? Probably, but that is no excuse to remain silent.
All that shows is that freedoms and liberties are to be purchased by the highest bidder. It sets a bad precedent for future stars of the sport and further erases what many of the most notable combat sports athletes of the past tried to accomplish.
As a member of the combat sports community it is the athletes responsibility to fight both in and out of their respect rings/cages. Fightings sports will always hold a special place in the heart of the blue-collared and it’s for them that these athletes should speak up. It doesn’t matter whether they choose to speak up against police brutality, sexual inequality, racial profiling or other American issues; their voice and actions will spark conversation and change.
And as great as America is as a country, there’s always room for change.