ISHPEMING -- The sport of mixed martial arts is no longer just a man's world as more females fight their way to the top.
Amanda Wyatt, better known by her competitors as White Widow, broke into the sport a year ago and already grappled her way to number 12 in the world for her weight class.
“We deserve to be here,” explained Wyatt. “It is a gruesome sport. If you don’t like it, then don’t do it, but it can be for anybody. I thoroughly enjoy fighting.”
Wyatt spends five or six days and approximately 15 hours to training in two gyms.
“I mostly grapple and spar with men so you have to put aside feelings, emotions and just get in there,” she said. “When you get hurt, pretty much have to man up.”
Recently UFC’s tournament showcased, for the first time, a women's championship fight.
In a Fuel TV interview following the match, UFC President Dana White called it "monumental" adding it "was one of the best fights of the night."
“The women’s division is exploding,” explained Wyatt’s MMA coach, Jason Sadowski. “Now that there’s women’s MMA in UFC, you can guarantee that there will be more women fighters.”
TV Station Profiles & Public Inspection Files forWLUC