@Nially_Bob
With due respect, I already agreed with that statement above. :-)
The assumption that they are necessarily weaker, however, is problematic. And regardless of whether they are physically weaker, that doesn’t mean they’re a worse fighter. That’s the problem as I see it.
As stated above, I think that fighting anyone obviously weaker than you is weak in itself, and should be avoided. If it can’t, it should be handled carefully. But it’s a distinctly sexist thing to say that women shouldn’t be hit. No one should be hit. But sometimes, you need to to extract yourself from a situation.
I agree with your general assessment, but disagree when it comes to general rules that should come from that assessment.