Mariska Joubert Raids the Male Dominated MMA Industry
Recently selected to be the first and only female MMA instructor at Decota MMA & Rocktuff Boxing Academy, Mariska Joubert aims to make a mark in MMA this year.
Joubert started MMA just to find a fitness regimen and lose weight, but her journey took a big turn. "Initially, I was the only female MMA athlete at the club," said Joubert. "Throughout the year (2016), more interest started growing as more ladies wanted to join."
Joubert said the challenge was that the ladies that wanted to join felt uncomfortable due to the number of men in the room outnumbering the females. As a strategic move, she was given an opportunity to become a female MMA instructor in order to make the ladies feel at ease.
She took a further step in this accolade by using her position to also inspire young girls. "We have a Bullyproof team with young athletes where I specifically focus on the young girls," she said. The gym recently launched female self defense classes, ran by Joubert. She is also involed with female boxing classes.
Joubert is also launching her MMA career this year. Her first fight is at MFC on the 5th of March 2017. "I have rounded off one week of intense training and will be bringing a polished product into the cage," she said. "I am just extremely excited and grateful for this opportunity."
Joubert said that the reason why there is not a lot of females in MMA is because it is considered to be a musculin sport. However, she feels that it can make an impact on any gender. "Male or female, we all have a fighter inside of us," she explained. "It is genetically encoded in all of us."
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