The wolverine is much larger; up to 107 cm in length, up to 45cm at the shoulder, and weighs up to 25 kilograms.
I will break down the respective weaponry and defenses for each species.
Firstly the wolverine.
The wolverine's teeth are unique. They have a special molar that is revered 90 degrees which is used for breaking through bone. Their jaws are powerful and the combination of strong jaw muscles and special molars allow them to eat every part of the animal including hooves, bones, and teeth.
According to Dr. Jens Persson from the Swedish Wolverine Project, wolverine claws are believed to be semi-retractable but are actually fixed. However, the toe biomechanics effectively allows them to perform a similar action, which of course allows them to be kept sharp. These claws are also curved and therefore ideal for hooking and shredding.
In terms of behavior, the wolverine is fearless. It has been recorded killing a polar bear by latching onto the throat with its jaws and suffocating the animal. Its primary means of killing is suffocation by biting the throat and not letting go, and also by crushing with its powerful jaws and specially adapted molars.
The wolverine's main defense against predators is its ferocity. It uses this together with its sharp claws, sharp teeth, powerful jaws, and thick skin and fur to protect its kills against much bigger predators, including wolves and bears.
Although the wolverine is known to have a thick hide, wolverines have been recorded killed by North American porcupine quills in a number of instances.
Now let's look at the honey badger.
Other than its willingness to fight to the bitter end, the honey badger's defenses are fourfold.
First, it is built to take a beating. Honey badgers live in an environment inhabited by many much larger predators, including lions, leopards, hyaenas, Cape hunting dogs, cheetahs, and of course, as we both evolved in Africa: man.
It is normal for predators in this environment to attack and kill any other predator. This is most likely to reduce food competition. That means that honey badgers have evolved to survive in the same environment as these much larger and well equipped carnivores.
Honey badgers need to be exceptionally tough to survive. Lions, leopards, and hyaenas are all well-known to attack and attempt to kill honey badgers. These attempts are sometimes successful but very often they are not. The honey badger will fight non-stop until it is dead or the attacker tires, at which point the honey badger will make a break for it.
The honey badger has an exceptionally tough, thick, and loose hide, specifically evolved to defend it against biting, clawing, and stinging. It is almost 6mm thick and extremely tough. A good example of how tough is the fact that African porcupine quills rarely penetrate it. Bear in mind that African porcupines are three times the size of their North American cousins.
Their second defense is tirelessness. They can literally keep fighting for hours on end. This is a problem for a predator already battling to gnaw through the skin. The effort is tiring, and the whole time, the honey badger is struggling and counterattacking with its own claws and teeth.
The third defense of the honey badger is that when attacked, it will go for its attacker's groin. There are records (Stevenson-Hamilton 1947) from the Kruger National Park in South Africa of adult male Cape buffaloes having bled to death after being savaged by honey badgers in this manner.
Lastly, the honey badger has a reversible anal gland. The smell produced by it is described as "suffocating."
The honey badgers weaponry includes a set of much smaller but sharper teeth than that of the wolverine, sharp claws, and equal ferocity and stubbornness to that of the wolverine.
In my opinion, it boils down to whether the wolverine could get through the honey badger's defenses to kill him and whether the honey badger even has the tools to kill a wolverine.
While the wolverines weaponry is formidable, it does not approach that of lions, leopards or hyaenas. Below is a link to a video of a leopard battling to kill a honey badger. It succeeds in the end, but takes one hour to do so.
Another video shows a honey badger fending off six lions and then making good his escape.
