When art teacher Rachel Head turned up at college with bruises on her face, her students were curious yet unconcerned. Her colleagues weren't worried either because it had happened before and was likely to happen again.
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Apart from teaching, Head, 45, of Tuggeranong, is a mixed martial arts fighter.
''I'm a mum; I'm an artist; I'm a teacher, and then I do this as well,'' she said.
A single mother, Head finds time to train at Hume gym Storm MMA six days a week around her full-time teaching job. She fights under an alias because she likes to keep her private life separate from her school life.
The growing popularity of the Ultimate Fighting Championship has created enough interest in MMA to sustain a local scene, with four professional events scheduled in 2014 in the ACT.
Canberra-based promoter Storm Damage held its fourth professional MMA event in March. Of the 18 competitors, six were from Canberra. Head was one of them. However, her coaches were worried leading up to the fight. Of the two women, her opponent was more experienced and possessed formidable grappling skills. If the fight went to the ground, her coach was certain Head would lose.
But their fears were unwarranted. Head unleashed a brutal one-sided beating, peppering her opponent with kicks and punches before being declared the winner just two and a half minutes into the first round.
Chris Goldrick, 27, trains at the same gym, and also fought at the Storm Damage 4 event. He started training in 2006 and is an account manager at the Department of Foreign Affairs.
''I spend my days talking to our embassies in China and France - very public servant-y,'' he said.
Goldrick also dominated his opponent, winning by unanimous decision, and is eager for his next fight. Work colleagues who came to support him were suitably impressed.
''At first, all they knew was the stereotype of the tattoo-covered, human cockfighting type of thing,'' he said. ''They came along and watched and they said, 'It's not street fighting, it's a sport, it's fantastic!' I think they might be hooked.''
Storm Damage and Brace are the only MMA promotions in Canberra, and both say they have high standards that put fighters' safety first. A doctor is present at all fights, and fighters undergo compulsory blood screening for transmissible diseases. Both promotions match opponents carefully in an attempt to prevent new, inexperienced fighters from copping a severe beating.
All of these precautions are voluntary, said Storm Oshyer, promoter of Storm Damage. A former competitor, he also owns and coaches at Storm MMA, and is licensed to referee and judge at MMA events in NSW.
''In the ACT, it's all self-sanctioned, self-regulated. So basically, unfortunately, anybody could put on an MMA show. Which is a little bit scary,'' he said. ''I guess if another promotion comes in and does things bodgily, they might look at putting legislation in. But then, to me, it might be a bit late, guys! I welcome regulation myself.''
MMA is unregulated in both territories, Queensland and Tasmania. In NSW, regulation is based on UFC rules. Victoria and Western Australia allow MMA but not in a cage. South Australia's combat sports regulation relies on rules recommended by international sanctioning bodies (of which there are none for MMA).