Kunlun Fight 33 昆仑决33 Wang Cong vs Valentina Shevchenko

[Kevin von Duuglas-Ittu]

Not sure what the rules are for Kunlun, but Valentina, who may be the best female Muay Thai fighter on the planet right now, is very confused by what seems to be a rule that you can't cross your hands, even briefly in the clinch. The ref seems to explain "no elbows" and "no clinch" before the fight. But fantastic action, fight starts at 5:24, as she tries to adjust on the fly to the rules and a very aggressive opponent.
 

It's crazy how many female fighters seem to have negative experiences fighting in China.

[WaffleNinja]

The Chinese refs do seem to be more active in restricting the clinch. I'm not too surprised many female fighters are having trouble in China, female athletes from China do very well in the Olympics, soccer and other sport and on top of that they have a heritage of martial arts.

[Kevin von Duuglas-Ittu]

The Chinese refs do seem to be more active in restricting the clinch. I'm not too surprised many female fighters are having trouble in China, female athletes from China do very well in the Olympics, soccer and other sport and on top of that they have a heritage of martial arts.

 

No, the trouble in China isn't that the opponents are so good (though this fighter's awesome). It's more about how they are treated there, their experience of fighting, the stay, everything. Valentina looks really pissed, and very confused. We've heard from a lot of westerners who just had very bad Chinese fight experiences. Female western fighters are drawn there because there is very big money being offered, but almost all of them that we've talked to regret it.

[WaffleNinja]

Interesting, are you at liberty to elaborate on the details?

[Kevin von Duuglas-Ittu]

Interesting, are you at liberty to elaborate on the details?

 

It's a very strong story we've heard. There seems to be distinct nationalism behind a lot of Chinese promotions, basically they are there to show the superiority of Chinese fighters, so pretty much everything gets skewed to the Chinese fighter. Sometimes this is the size of the opponent, sometimes its the rules, the reffing, the accommodations. The whole experience ends up feeling like some kind of assault that fighters aren't quite ready for psychologically. Now, there are of course many promotions, and this is a very big generalization, but it also is a kind of theme we have heard across the board. Hell, I even know of a well-known persona who flew out there under the advice of a friend who saw it as a quick money grab, and had such a harsh experience she basically retired from fighting. I also remember the almost all Chinese card that was put on for the Queen's Birthday a year ago, which matched up Chinese fighters against Thai fighters (in Thailand), in a production that was beamed back to China. We watched this Thai girl put against a pretty big and tough Chinese fighter. She was rag-dolled all over the ring with illegal throws of every kind. It was pretty rough to see, and clearly the Thai girl had no idea what she was in for - in Thailand. The general picture that emerges is that these tend to be very pro-Chinese productions where the non-Chinese fighter is often at a disadvantage, sometimes disadvantages they don't expect. We've heard several western female fighters say: "Well, I'm not doing that again." Valentina seems to have that look on her face too.

On the other hand Chinese promotions are really on the rise, there's a big money draw growing there. With the dramatic increase of Chinese tourism in Thailand, the growth of the Chinese economy and middle class, this is just going to expand. Lots of Thais are finding work there, both as fighters and as trainers.