Brawling Over Brawling

摘要

The rules are simple: two fighters square off, battling bare-knuckled until one gives up, passes out, or the fight is stopped by a doctor, referee or cornerman. Biting and eye-gouging are off-limits, but otherwise anything goes— punching, kicking, kneeing, choking, whatever. It's known on popular pay-per-view broadcasts as "ultimate" or "extreme" fighting. Its detractors call it brutal—and so, for that matter, do its promoters. But that's where the agreement ends. Officials across the country, led by Sen. John McCain of Arizona, are crusading against what some call human cockfights. Promoters insist that the fights are legitimate pro sporting events and are safer than they look—as safe as, say, football or hockey. And, unlike in boxing, nobody's been paralyzed or killed. Not yet, anyway.