ABSTRACT
In 2014, transgender MMA fighter Fallon Fox won a fight against Tamikka Brents, breaking Brents’ skull in the process. Fox, who had gender reassignment surgery in 2006, has been a source of controversy since being forced to ‘come out’ as a transgender athlete. While some fellow MMA fighters support her right to fight as a woman, other fighters and some sports commentators have decried her participation in the sport, effectively calling for transgender discrimination. At the nexus of ethics and law, transgender athletes face uncertainty, aversion, and hostility in their efforts to compete. This chapter examines the place of transgender athletes in MMA, with a focus on Fallon Fox as a case study in gender identity and the ethics of transgender athletic participation. As the sports world comes to grips with the question of nonbinary gender classification, this is a timely, focused examination of a crucial ethical question facing athletes in MMA and beyond.
