SAS Australia: Honey Badger Nick Cummins punches AFLW’s Sabrina Frederick
Former rugby player Nick ‘Honey Badger’ Cummins punches AFLW star in confronting first episode of reality show SAS Australia. WATCH THE GRAPHIC FOOTAGE
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Rugby player Nick ‘Honey Badger’ Cummins has gone fist to fist in a boxing encounter against AFLW player Sabrina Frederick.
Confidential believes the scene could be one of the most controversial to play out on reality television in Australia to date although Frederick has defended Cummins for taking her on in a confronting boxing bout on reality show, SAS Australia.
“I was scared but that’s the whole point of SAS selection – not letting the fear consume you and instead harnessing it to empower you,” Fredericks said about the scene.
“I am truly grateful for Nick and for that experience.”
The contest played out in the season premiere of the show on Channel 7, where 17 celebrities are put through their paces attempting to pass the gruelling Special Forces selection course.
Frederick and Cummins were the only male/female combination to fight while others to face off included Erin McNaught and Shayna Jack, Eden Dally and James Magnussen and Merrick Watts and Mitchell Johnson.
The challenge proved too much for publicist Roxy Jacenko, who quit the show after being pummelled by ironwoman Candice Warner.
Richmond player Frederick measures 182cm and weighs 97kgs while Cummins is 188cm and weighs 96kgs.
“I went on SAS Australia to challenge myself; to push myself to my absolute limits both physically and mentally,” Frederick explained.
“My whole life I have been fighting for equality. For people to treat all as equal, regardless of gender or race, and this task was an opportunity for exactly that. I volunteered first and I picked Nick for two reasons. Firstly, I wanted to select the person I thought was the biggest challenge and secondly, I knew our respect was mutual and he would give me a fair fight, regardless of my gender. In battle, the enemy doesn’t care about your gender or size and we had to think like soldiers to get through each and every task.”
SAS Chief Instructor Ant Middleton defended the decision to allow Frederick and Cummins to fight each other.
The same male/female combat situation played out in the UK version, SAS: Who Dares Wins, where 29-year-old midwife Louise Gabbitas was punched in the head by 27-year-old male student Nathaniel.
“All combat roles, including the SAS, are now open to everyone, male and female alike. The selection process remains exactly the same, regardless of gender. There is no special treatment,” he said.
“You cannot choose your enemy and the enemy doesn’t care who you are. We are looking for individuals who can do the job. The hand-to-hand combat task was the ultimate test of character and bravery. Sabrina had the luxury of choosing her enemy and she chose a tough opponent, showing true strength of character and how much she wanted to test herself and get the absolute most out of this experience. Nick did exactly what was asked of him. They both held a good and correct account of themselves. SAS Australia is the closest thing there is to the real selection process. Standards will not be dropped. It really is that simple.”
Originally published as SAS Australia: Honey Badger Nick Cummins punches AFLW’s Sabrina Frederick