"TUFF" Women Fighters Rebut Karo's Comments

On a recent episode of Mark Cuban's Inside MMA television show, Karo Parisyan was more than candid in his estimation of women in mixed martial arts. As you can guess, what he said wasn't exactly popular and it probably didn't help that he referred to himself in the third person. "Look, I know all the women are going to hate Karo Parisyan now, but the cage is not for women," he said. "Can't they do one thing that guys do and they don't? Just one? Give me a break. They do weightlifting. They do wrestling. Not MMA, please. It's too brutal for women," Karo continued.

In Virginia Beach, at least, there's a few women who would take exception to Karo's viewpoint on women being involved with combat sports. They're part of "TUFF," which is an acronym for Tidewater Ultimate Female Fighting. In this fighting organization, women of all ages, ability levels, and walks of life compete in a non-striking form of ultimate fighting.

Consider it a women's form of ADCC (Abu Dhabi Combat Club) -- on the night chronicled by the Virginian Pilot, a local newspaper, 13 of the 14 fights ended with a submission maneuver. Gary Pekoe, the owner of TUFF, attempts to make the distinction between what TUFF is and what it is not."We are not fluffy, roll-around, erotic, Jell-O, mud wrestling," he tells the 20 or so spectators before the matches begin. "We are also not full-contact, break-noses, snap-wrists wrestling."

He freely admits he included "ultimate fighting" in the group's name because it created a cool acronym. But he doesn't allow the rough stuff you see on Ultimate Fighting Championship shows that seem to run continuously on cable. "No punching, elbowing, arm chokes, joint locks," Pekoe says. "We've taken Ultimate Fighting and mixed martial arts and stripped them back down to where the girls won't get hurt."

Although the girls aren't being put in the hospital with injuries or suspended by the state's athletic commission for injuries, they do take some knocks. They range from ex-bouncers to former Russian gymnasts. Some are strong, most are trained in some form or another, but all are tough. Ivy, a former MMA fighter, reports that her nose has been broken three times. Where's Karo Parisyan now?

Ivy, the former fighter and trainer to many of the girls, sums up the adventure that is Tidewater Ultimate Female Fighting. "This is real fighting. The goal in the end is for there to be a winner -- and a loser. We're not trying to establish who's the world's best here. You want to get on that mat and get the ultimate workout and, hopefully, you'll have a learning experience."