Just how fast can a sport grow to become a fan favorite? Dana White’s Power Slap league is among the few sports gaining attention for the right and wrong reasons worldwide. It has garnered praise and critiques equally, with pro-gamers advocating for it while medics and activists condemning it.
Medics suggest that the impact of the slap on the brain is likely to cause rotational forces in the brain, and in a matter of time, it may lead to severe brain injuries. Recently, in the RXF Slap Fighting championship in Romania, one man was left with a disfigured face after participating in the slapping sport. This raised a lot of concerns about how safe the sport is.
However, fans still love the sport, and Americans are even getting deeper into it, with online viewership metrics revealing the success.
Why Powerslap is Gaining Momentum Just Like Cornhole Tossing and Pickleball
The UFC President Dan Whites’s influence on Power Slap has seen it capture the world’s attention. White has introduced a league where participants compete to strike each other in the face. The “silly slaps” had participants demonstrate different slapping skills until one submits or gets knocked down.
Dana White, who was also approved as the promoter of the sport, said, “There was just something about it I liked, and I love the challenge of it,” White told the Associated Press this week. “I love taking something and turning it into a big brand.”
Recently, the Nevada Athletic Commission made Slap-Fight a sport by approving it. Upon the approval, more fighters joined and made debuts on the stage, showcasing their slapping abilities. Even though injuries have come out of the contests, the sport is still aligning with new rules coming every day to make it safer.
Slap Fight gained more popularity when it got on air through Warner Bros. Discovery cable station TBS which broadcasted the matches on the show dabbed “Power Slap.”
Fanbase Growing and More Rules Introduced
As slap fight gains momentum, fans are increasing, and the numbers available reveal the interest the sport has garnered over a short time.
Dana White compared the metrics on social media with other sports and said. “Not only is it unbelievable money-wise, it is also unbelievable on social media. We’re No.1 in all of the sports…. And when I say all of sports, if you take the NFL, the NBA, the NHL, F1, WWE, and added them all together…. Their numbers don’t compare to Power Slap.”
He was also elated that the sport had received a significant boost with the league set for a new broadcast deal with Rumble. On the broadcast, the last fight in March received over two million viewers.
Dana White believes the sport will take a trajectory like the one he saw with UFC. Initially, UFC got a deal with Spike TV, and later it partnered with FOX and moved to ESPN. In the same way, Dana believes that the Slap Fight championships will end up everywhere, and the sport will be popular in America and worldwide.
New rules have also been affected to ensure the sport remains safe as players slap each other. For example, the Nevada Athletic Commission developed regulations where competitors need to use open-handed blows and never strike opponents below the chin. They also proposed video reviews for the slap where a competitor found violating the rules will be disqualified.
Ryan Knuppel
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