The people in the pics dont give it an accurate scale. Best to take a pic with a height chart.
You can't go just be weight. For example, how much of each is composed of muscle? What is the average physical condition of each? A wolf lives by tooth and claw every day, whilst the average man drives to McDonalds.
Take a badger for example. It weights about 18 pounds and will tear the shit out of you. I'm not saying it would win in a fight versus a man, but you'll pay a high price for the win.
Youre right, its difficult to quantify and I couldve included the length and height, but were all familiar with the general structure. Those pics are cool pics, but if they really are that pic then they dont qualify in this discussion cuz the title states "Average" and if those wolves are considered average size, I dont know why anyone would pose with them unless they were hunting them specifically and needed proof that they made the catch. Otherwise, its the same as taking a pic of catching a big fish. You dont show off an average size.
I am glad the discussion has gotten this far and I always believed that the modern bulletin board services would be the only way to extend the discussion. I am dead positive people came in here and voted "wolf" and never looked back. However, for a discussion sakes, I like to see reasons behind votes.
Now bare in mind, I never included statistics and I personally will not give the wold 9 times out of 10 over the man. Too many things going on. That is why I included "they both die" cuz I can see a man getting bit fatally, but still rendering a kill out of desperate survival. The wolf dies, then the man dies later. Id say this is more probable than anything.
Wolves do hunt everyday whereas the man does not. However, wolves do not normally hunt man. Theyve not adapted to such a species so a wolf would look at a man like it was an upright deer.
What irks me about this thread is the quickness of assumptions. Assumption that man would panic, assumption a wolf would know exactly how to kill without mistake. Assumptions can be justified but they are not a means to an end. I made an analogy earlier that NO ONE TOUCHED. I said to put yourself in this scenario and make something at stake like your child. Would you really submit so easily for the sake of discussion if your kid was involved? Perhaps protecting something else other than yourself changes things. Buuuuut if it did, WHY?