Author Identifier
Colin Doherty: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3589-7490
Date of Award
2025
Document Type
Thesis
Publisher
Edith Cowan University
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy
School
School of Medical and Health Sciences
First Supervisor
Oliver Barley
Second Supervisor
Lauren Fortington
Abstract
Background: Athletes in mixed martial arts (MMA) and Muay Thai (MT) face challenges before, during, and after competition, including hydration testing, disordered eating (DE), rapid weight changes (RWC), and health problems (HP). These issues can affect athletes' health and performance and raise regulatory and safety concerns for governing bodies like the Western Australia Combat Sports Commission (WACSC). However, these challenges are poorly described in the context of MMA and MT, as most of the existing research focuses on Olympic combat sports. This thesis addresses these challenges in MMA and MT, aiming to identify areas where the WACSC can improve athlete health and safety. Structured as a thesis by publication, it consists of seven manuscripts that provide insights into the accuracy and reliability of hydration testing, prevalence of DE, relationship between RWC and competitive success, competition-related HPs, relationship between RWC and injury, and injury-related HPs reported by athletes and medical practitioners. Methods: Both laboratory and survey research were conducted. The laboratory study recruited 30 combat sports athletes (15 male and 15 female) who underwent a sauna protocol (six 30-minute sessions) on two separate occasions. To investigate whether sauna-induced body mass loss (BML) could explain changes in hydration biomarkers, the test-retest reliability of blood, urine, and tear biomarkers was examined, along with potential sex-specific differences. The survey research analysed data from 24 to 26 combat sports events over a 12- to 14 month surveillance period. Athletes responded to online questionnaires at different time points, with DE and HP questionnaires completed 7 days post-competition and RWC questionnaire completed 1 day post-competition. Official fight data, weigh-in body mass (BM), secondary weigh-in BM, and medical practitioner-reported injuries were provided by the WACSC. Results: The laboratory study found that BML accounted for less than 25% of the variation in hydration biomarkers, with biomarkers displaying poor to moderate test-retest reliability. Changes in blood biomarkers also varied by sex. Survey results indicated that two out of five athletes reported at least one competition HP. Among female athletes, greater rapid weight loss in the 24 hours before weigh-ins (RWL –24 hours) was associated with winning (OR: 1.57, p = 0.001). In males, RWL –24 hours was associated with injury-related HPs (OR: 27 1.20, p = 0.044). Additionally, 83% of males and 89% of females scored moderate to very high for DE. Discrepancies were observed between athlete-reported and medical practitioner-recorded injuries: 97 athletes reported injury-related HPs, but only 25 were confirmed by physicians, with documentation lacking for 82 cases. Conclusion: Current hydration biomarkers are both inaccurate and unreliable, rendering them unsuitable for managing weight-cutting practices in combat sports. Approximately two out of five combat sports athletes report experiencing HPs post-competition, with RWC associated with both competitive success and increased injury risk. Additionally, most combat athletes grapple with DE, highlighting these issues as crucial areas for intervention. These findings underscore the need for educating athletes on safe RWC practices and providing support for those facing DE concerns to promote career longevity, reduce injury risk, and improve weight management in MMA and MT.
DOI
10.25958/rcc6-gm46
Access Note
Access to this thesis is embargoed until 5th July 2026
Recommended Citation
Doherty, C. (2025). Safety and performance in combat sports. Edith Cowan University. https://doi.org/10.25958/rcc6-gm46