A contestant suffers an ugly injury in Dana White's "slapfight"
Neurologists and sports stars condemn a new competition that is gaining momentum online, and in which the participants are seen slapping each other as hard as they can.
"Power Slap: Road To The Title", is a program launched by UFC president Dana White, which aired this week on television.
It premiered on Wednesday, January 18, and will include eight episodes that its creators claim are unscripted.
As part of the competition, competitors from all over the world, men and women, are seen fighting on stage to prove that they have the strongest slap.
Neurologist Chris Nowinski, a former wrestler and executive director of the Concussion Legacy Foundation, said the program is "pure exploitation" and warned that some of the competitors featured in the video he shared on Twitter "may never be the same" after the blows to their heads, wondering: "What's next?
Who survives a stabbing?".
He labeled both White and the US television network that broadcasts the show, TBS, saying they should be "ashamed" for creating and backing a sport he said could put people at serious risk of brain injury.
So what exactly is Power Slap and what are the rules?
In a two-minute introductory video, White explained the rules of the contest, which was licensed by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
"Before the game starts, a coin toss takes place to initiate the first slap," he says, "There are at most three rounds in a fight. In each round the fighter will slap an open hand to the opponent's face."
At the beginning of the round the first hit has a time limit of 30 seconds to give a slap with an open hand, below the eye but above the chin.
The blow cannot be at the base of the palm, and the whole hand must make contact at the same time.
After the slap, the competitor has 30 seconds to recover and return to the "fighting stance".
Referees use a mandatory 10-point system, like in boxing, where the winner of a round gets 10 points and the opponent gets 9 or less.
Those who receive the slap are not allowed to flinch, raise their shoulder or tuck their chin in - rules that reinforce the claim that they are in fact defenseless.
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But as mentioned, experts warned that the event has the potential to cause significant and long-term physical damage to those who take part in the competition.
Neurologist specialist Nicos Evangelo, a professor at Nottingham University Hospital, says that "One of the problems with Power Slap is that participants are penalized when they move or flinch. Any movement that might reduce the force of the blow to the head is penalized... A blow at such a straight angle can cause severe brain damage. It's a recipe for disaster."
Among other things, the dangers are memory impairment and other cognitive effects on the brain.
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In the last few days, a video of one of the participants, whose entire face was distorted by the blow, was circulated online.
In fact, already in the first episode one of the participants suffered a powerful knockout, and suffering after that comes in the memory.
As mentioned, another participant suffered a serious injury to his lips, and continued to receive blows even when he was bleeding.
Another competitor tried to return to continue the bout, and failed on her feet before collapsing.
Many of the surfers giggled with amusement at the sight of the damage to the faces of the competitors, but according to Avangelo, "it's a matter of time before we see a serious brain injury."
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