Fallon Fox is an American transgender athlete who fought six professional MMA fights between 2012 and 2014.
Background
Fox was born November 29, 1975 in Toledo, Ohio. Fox and spouse had a child prior to getting married, and Fox joined the Navy to support their family. Following an honorable discharge, Fox enrolled at University of Toledo briefly before becoming a truck driver. Fox transitioned in 2006 and had a sanctioned amateur MMA fight in 2011.
Fox fought two sanctioned matches before coming out as trans in 2013. The revelation was immediately controversial and the subject of intense media scrutiny. Fox retired in 2014 after a match against Tamikka Brents. Fox’s pro record was 5-1 with three knockouts.
In 2014, Fox was inducted into the National Gay and Lesbian Sports Hall of Fame. The 2015 documentary Game Face covers the controversy around Fox’s career.
In 2020, Fox drew criticism after posting on Twitter: “For the record, I knocked two out. One woman’s skull was fractured, the other not. And just so you know, I enjoyed it. See, I love smacking up TEFS [sic] in the cage who talk transphobic nonsense. It’s bliss!”
Transbian separatism
Fox was a significant part of the transbian separatist movement of the mid-2010s. This movement was marked by several fights around inclusion in “women’s spaces,” including sex-segregated competitive sports, the “cotton ceiling” debate on dating preferences of self-identified lesbians, the Michigan Women’s Music Festival, and prescriptivism around language.
References
Ennis, Dawn (July 17, 2022). Exclusive: Fallon Fox responds to BBC apology over its attack on her. Los Angeles Blade https://www.losangelesblade.com/2022/07/17/exclusive-fallon-fox-responds-to-bbc-apology-over-its-attack-on-her/
Somervill, Ewan (July 16, 2022). BBC apologises after interviewing transgender athlete who boasted of violence against women. The Telegraph https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/07/16/bbc-apologises-interviewing-transgender-athlete-who-boasted/
Kroll, Justin (April 21, 2021). Mark Gordon Pictures Developing Biopic On Fallon Fox, The First Openly Transgender MMA Fighter. Deadline https://deadline.com/2021/04/mark-gordon-pictures-biopic-fallon-fox-1234741056/
Silverman, Robert (July 2, 2020). How Joe Rogan Made Trans MMA Fighter Fallon Fox’s Life a Living Hell. Daily Beast https://www.thedailybeast.com/how-joe-rogan-made-trans-mma-fighter-fallon-foxs-life-a-living-hell/
Kahrl, Christina (February 18, 2015). Grantland Q&A: Fallon Fox. Grantland https://grantland.com/features/grantland-qa-fallon-fox/
Truitt, Jos (February 16, 2015). Fallon Fox on life as a trans athlete: ‘The scope of vitriol and anger was mind-blowing.’ The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2015/feb/16/fallon-fox-trans-mma-athlete-interview
Felt, Hunter (November 14, 2014). Transgender MMA fighter Fallon Fox faces toughest opponent yet: prejudice. The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2014/nov/14/transgender-mma-fighter-fallon-fox-joe-rogan
Lees, Paris (September 26, 2014). MMA Fighter Fallon Fox Is a Woman, Get Over It. Vice https://www.vice.com/en/article/fallon-fox-is-a-woman-get-over-it-925/
Kellaway, Mitch (September 22, 2014). UFC Women’s Champ Refuses to Fight Trans Athlete Fallon Fox. Advocate.com https://www.advocate.com/sports/2014/09/22/ufc-womens-champ-refuses-fight-trans-athlete-fallon-fox
Zeigler, Cyd (July 9, 2014). Gay sports hall of fame inducts 15 new members. Outsport. [archive] http://www.outsports.com/2014/7/9/5883239/gay-and-lesbian-sports-hall-of-fame-2014
Staff report (May 29, 2014). 25 Transgender People Who Influenced American Culture. Time https://time.com/130734/transgender-celebrities-actors-athletes-in-america/
Fox, Fallon (May 27, 2014). Should LOGO pull RuPauls drag race? TransAdvocate https://www.transadvocate.com/should-logo-pull-rupauls-drag-race_n_13747.htm
Maxwell, Nancy; Hass, Robert (December 23, 2013). Fallon Fox, MMA’s First Transgender Fighter. GQ https://www.gq.com/story/fallon-fox-transgender-mma-fighter
Zeigler, Cyd (October 16, 2013). Fallon Fox’s loss brings out the worst in the MMA world. Outsports https://www.outsports.com/2013/10/16/4845066/fallon-foxs-loss-brings-out-the-worst-in-the-mma-world/
Morgan, Glennisha (May 28, 2013). Fallon Fox, Transgender MMA Fighter, Wins First Match Since Coming Out. HuffPost https://www.huffpost.com/entry/fallon-fox-transgender-victory_n_3345934
Brydum, Sunnivie (May 26, 2013). Fallon Fox, MMA’s First Trans Fighter, Wins First Match. Advocate.com https://www.advocate.com/politics/transgender/2013/05/26/fallon-fox-mmas-first-trans-fighter-wins-first-match
Gregory, Sean (May 24, 2013). Should A Former Man Be Able To Fight Women? Time https://keepingscore.blogs.time.com/2013/05/24/should-a-former-man-be-able-to-fight-women/
McNeil, Franklin (May 23, 2013). Fallon Fox fighting for equality. ESPN https://www.espn.com/mma/story/_/id/9306162/mma-transsexual-fallon-fox-fighting-cage
Bishop, Greg (May 10, 2013). A Pioneer, Reluctantly: For Transgender Fighter Fallon Fox, There Is Solace in the Cage. New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/13/sports/for-transgender-fighter-fallon-fox-there-is-solace-in-the-cage.html
Bishop, Greg; Begg, Jack (May 10, 2013). For Transgender Fighter Fallon Fox, There Is Solace in the Cage. New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/13/sports/for-transgender-fighter-fallon-fox-there-is-solace-in-the-cage.html
Popper, Ben (March 21, 2013). Fighting Fallon Fox: the controversial science of transgender athletes in combat sports. The Verge https://www.theverge.com/2013/3/21/4131174/fallon-fox-mma-science-transgender-fighting-athletes
Martinez, Michael (March 10, 2013). First transgender MMA fighter goes public. CNN https://www.cnn.com/2013/03/09/us/transgender-fighter/index.html
Pugmire, Lance (March 7, 2013). Transgender MMA fighter Fallon Fox puts California panel on the spot. Los Angeles Times https://www.latimes.com/sports/la-xpm-2013-mar-07-la-sp-sn-mma-transgender-fallon-fox-20130307-story.html
McDonough, Katie (March 6, 2013). Let Fallon Fox fight. Salon https://www.salon.com/2013/03/06/let_fallon_fox_fight/
McNeil, Franklin; Isaacson, Melissa (March 6, 2013). FSBC reviewing Fox’s MMA license. ESPN https://www.espn.com/mma/story/_/id/9023730/transgender-fighter-fallon-fox-faces-review-mma-license
Zeigler, Cyd (March 5, 2013). Fallon Fox Comes Out as Trans Pro MMA Fighter. Outsports. [archive] http://www.outsports.com/2013/3/5/4068840/fallon-fox-trans-pro-mma-fighter
Resources
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Fallon Fox (fallonfox.com) [archive]
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