Social media is abuzz with reactions as a ‘wild’ video showcasing ‘spider fighting’ has captured widespread attention.
Sports encompass much more than the likes of soccer, baseball, and basketball; they include diverse activities like ostrich racing, chess boxing, Sepak takraw, and the English tradition of cheese rolling.
One distinctive sport currently gaining popularity online is spider fighting.
This sport is particularly popular in countries such as Malaysia, Japan, and the Philippines. In a typical local spider derby, two female spiders are pitted against each other in a fierce battle to the end.
A 2003 paper from Ateneo de Manila University, authored by Ty Matejowsky, notes that both Filipino children and adults engage in collecting, training, and rehabilitating spiders to fight against others of their kind.
These matches are arranged, bets are placed, and as the study suggests, this activity often serves as ‘the first stage of what can become a lifelong gambling obsession’ for many young people.
The contests typically begin with participants placing spiders at the end of a stick, usually made of bamboo or a broom.
Competitors then encourage their spiders to move along the stick, leading them to encounter an opponent.
The spiders then engage in combat, with the surviving spider declared the winner.
While spider fighting is not outright illegal, it is discouraged in certain regions.
Some cities across Asia have enacted laws to restrict the sport.
Nonetheless, a recent spider wrestling match has surfaced online.
Earlier this month, a TikTok user named @ricktastico shared a video of a spider derby on the platform.
The footage shows two spiders cautiously moving along a stick before engaging in combat.
After the fight, the victorious spider is returned to its box to rest before its next challenge.
The 55-second video has amassed 3.4 million views, with numerous TikTok users flocking to the comments to express their thoughts.
https://www.tiktok.com/@username/video/7421080825875221803
One person commented, “No way I just saw a spider get boxed irl,” while another added, “Spider getting boxed up before GTA 6 is insane.”
An additional viewer remarked, “I would become heavily addicted to gambling to this,” and another shared, “Did this in 6th grade with 20 people and a brown widow vs black widow. Just Florida things.”
Someone else pondered, “So many questions. How bored are you to start a spider fight club? How did you find out spiders would fight each other? Where/who makes all the supplies?”
One more commented: “People be doing everything but learning at school.”