The severe traumatic brain injury suffered by Canadian boxer Adonis Stevenson has pushed the subject of head trauma in combat sports back into the spotlight.

There are no easy solutions in either boxing or mixed martial arts, where repeated blows to the head are the norm despite the potential for serious and long-term consequences. The head is a main target in both sports and fighters say they know the risks.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 dangerous but itB次元官网网址檚 also something that the majority of us love the thrill, love the challenge, love the daring part of it,B次元官网网址� said former boxing champion Bernard Hopkins. B次元官网网址淭hatB次元官网网址檚 what makes us who we are.B次元官网网址�

Stevenson remained in stable but critical condition after a knockout loss last Saturday night in Quebec City. He dropped his WBC light heavyweight title to Oleksandr Gvozdyk of Ukraine.

The Montreal fighter underwent surgery to reduce bleeding in the brain and his prognosis remains uncertain. Doctors said that Stevenson is under mechanical ventilation, is sedated and requires specialized neurological monitoring.

The harsh reality of combat sports is that it is violent, often bloody, and at times, downright difficult to watch.

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Stevenson was on the receiving end of two nasty flurries of punches late in the 11th round at the B次元官网网址tron Centre. The final barrage included repeated head shots, with StevensonB次元官网网址檚 legs finally buckling after taking a stiff right hand while backed against the corner.

B次元官网网址淜nowing that these blows are cumulative in their damaging effect, it just points to the huge risks of sports like mixed martial arts and boxing in general,B次元官网网址� said Dr. Charles Tator, a neurosurgery professor at University of Toronto and a director at the Canadian Concussion Centre.

Fighters do not use head protection at the professional level in MMA or boxing. Both sports have made adjustments over the years by changing things like glove size, fight length and the addition of doctors at ringside.

However, the head has remained unprotected and as a result, injury prevention efforts can only go so far. Hopkins said adding headgear would send his sport into decline.

B次元官网网址淭his is professional, I think we should keep it authentic as possible,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淛ust have the right teaching and training of physicians that can immediately stop the fight when a fight needs to be stopped.B次元官网网址�

Chris Nowinski, a founder of the Concussion Legacy Foundation, said changing training techniques might help when it comes to combat sport.

B次元官网网址淭he No. 1 change would be to not have head blows in sparring,B次元官网网址� Nowinski said from Boston. B次元官网网址淵ou can imagine that for some fighters, it could be that 90 per cent of their hits to the head are in sparring and not fights.

B次元官网网址淭hat would be a dramatic change if the culture changed around allowing head impacts in sparring.B次元官网网址�

Hopkins, for one, dismissed the suggestion.

B次元官网网址淵ou canB次元官网网址檛 subtract punches in training or in a fight and not go for the head,B次元官网网址� he said during a promotional stop in Toronto. B次元官网网址淚t doesnB次元官网网址檛 make sense. It becomes a body-punching match.B次元官网网址�

As researchers and medical authorities learn more about concussions, head trauma and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), the alarm bells ring louder.

Some sports B次元官网网址� notably football B次元官网网址� have made changes to limit contact at practice while others have instituted concussion protocols.

B次元官网网址淚 think history shows that if you allow fighting, youB次元官网网址檙e going to have catastrophic brain injuries,B次元官网网址� Nowinski said. B次元官网网址淵ou might be able to do a bit to mitigate it but itB次元官网网址檚 going to happen eventually no matter what we try to do to prevent it.B次元官网网址�

While the entire body can be more of a target in MMA, the head still takes a pounding. And itB次元官网网址檚 not just with fists B次元官网网址� blows can come via elbow, knee or a kick to the head.

In one notable fight at UFC 229 last October, Tony Ferguson landed 114 significant strikes to opponent Anthony Pettis over a bloody two-round fight. According to Fightmetric, Pettis took 66 shots to the head over the 10-minute span before stopping due to a broken hand.

Ferguson, meanwhile, absorbed 32 blows to the head from PettisB次元官网网址檚 45 significant strikes. Both fighters looked like horror movie extras by the end, with their shorts and the mat riddled in blood.

Spectators at the Las Vegas arena lapped it up with broadcaster Joe Anik proudly proclaiming, B次元官网网址楳ixed martial arts!!B次元官网网址� as the second round ended, just seconds after pointing out heB次元官网网址檇 been sprayed with blood while sitting in his cageside seat.

There is simply a demand for these violent sports. Whether that will change as fighters and the public learn more about the potential dangers remains to be seen.

B次元官网网址淎s we better understand the long-term effects of these impacts, I think the demand for these sports if they continue as theyB次元官网网址檙e going will diminish because itB次元官网网址檚 hard to enjoy watching somebody get their brains bashed in,B次元官网网址� Nowinski said. B次元官网网址漎ou might be thinking about how it affects their family in the future.

B次元官网网址淏ut there still is further that we can go to reform the sports so I think weB次元官网网址檒l also see them get a little more humane as we go.B次元官网网址�

There may be changes down the road but it seems unlikely B次元官网网址� at least at the moment B次元官网网址� that the culture of boxing or MMA is ready for a revolution.

B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e in the business of hitting you in the head,B次元官网网址� Hopkins said. B次元官网网址淢y job when I was a fighter was to hit you anywhere thatB次元官网网址檚 legal to win, to break you down and submit you to my will.

B次元官网网址淲hen itB次元官网网址檚 a good fight, that means that the other guy has the same idea.B次元官网网址�

Gregory Strong, The Canadian Press

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