Exciting and daunting, gratifying and strenuous. Boxing is a sport that can be as old as civilization itself. Before what is seen as the sport's modern form, boxing was dangerous and even gruesome. But with the passage of time and many regulations and rules that gave boxing a more formal appeal, it is one of the most competitive sports at present. It is sought by those who need robust and power-packed sports. Boxing is popular with many people and is played by two fighters who wear boxing gloves. There are governing bodies for boxing in all the nations that organize the sport. These governing bodies coordinate the international and domestic level tournaments. Boxing is played at various international tournaments such as the Olympic Games, the Commonwealth Games, Asian Games, etc.
Many international boxing events are organized by international boxing federations such as the WBF. The sport has two formats, mainly amateur and professional. In both these formats, there are eight major divisions. These are Flyweight, Bantamweight, Featherweight, Lightweight, Welterweight, Middleweight, Light Heavyweight, and Heavyweight. Many big sporting icons are associated with the sport, such as Muhammad Ali and Mike Tyson.
There is no universally recognized world ruling body for pro boxing. So, each nation has its own set of rules. In the United States, there are various rules in different states. Usually, the fights take place in a ring about twenty feet in a square shape and are surrounded by four strands of rope. Pro fights are scheduled to last from four to twelve rounds. The duration of each round is about three minutes. But there are also two-minute rounds usually utilized in women's fights and a few fights held in Great Britain. About a hundred years ago, the pro matches lasted for fifteen rounds. But in the past forty years, the IBF, WBA, and WBC championships started to be scheduled for twelve rounds. A referee is positioned inside the ring with the fighters, regulating the fight.
In some jurisdictions, the referee scores the match and a couple of judges outside the ring. But in most jurisdictions, the referee does not take part in the judging. Only the three ringside officials judge the match. The officials give the award points to each fighter for all the rounds. A boxer must gain victory in two out of the three scorecards to get a decision victory. In Olympic fights, five judges score the match electronically by pushing a button when a punch is seen to have landed on a fighter. No punch is given as a hit unless at least three of the judges press their buttons within a second of each other. The boxers wear padded gloves that go up to about ten ounces in weight. A fight ends in a knockout when a fighter is knocked down and cannot get up till the count of ten.
A bout can be stopped by a technical knockout also. This is when the referee or the ringside physician deems a boxer to be unable to defend himself. This happens when a fighter has sustained a significant injury or when the fighter or his seconds decide that the match should not continue. A match may also end in a decision when the fight has gone the scheduled number of rounds and the judges decide the victor. Several preconditions can cause a fight to end in a draw. All the three officials give identical scores to both the fighters that result in a draw, as do two of the officials giving rivals identical scores, regardless of the scores of the third judges. Also, the match is deemed a draw when two officials decide the opposing boxers, and the third judge's scorecard is evenly divided between the rivals.
The fight is declared nullity in no contest because of an inconclusive and premature end. This happens when one of the participants cannot continue because of a cut caused by an accidental clash of heads early in the match. A match can also finish through disqualification. The rules that control amateur boxing are similar in continental Europe, Great Britain, and the United States. But they differ a lot from those which govern professional boxing. Amateur fights are usually three rounds in duration. The boxers also wear protective headgear. The Olympic fights changed to four rounds of two minutes from three rounds of three minutes for the Olympic Games at Sydney more than two decades ago. The referee only supervises the match. Three or five ringside officials judge the fight. The rules are also more strictly enforced in amateur boxing. Disqualifications are more common there than in professional boxing.
A good offense depends on the capability to give punches rapidly and place them strategically to go through the guard of the rival. Defensive tactics include warding, parrying punches with raised gloves and arms, moving the head evasively side to side and up and down, and twisting or bending one's upper body and head out of the path of the blow. Footwork is also vital to both the defense and the offense. The two usually recognized stances are southpaw and orthodox. The former has the left foot and the left hand forward, the latter the right foot and the right hand forward. The hand or foot that is forward is known as the lead. The fighters utilizing orthodox stance usually are right-handed and rely on that hand to generate power, utilizing the left hand to hook and jab. The converse is the truth for southpaw boxers, who are typically left-handed.
The lead head is extended in front of the body in both stances, and the other hand is near the chin for protection. Also, the shoulders are hunched, and the chin is tucked into the chest. There are individual variations also. There are some basic punches. These include the straight right, uppercut, hook, and jab. This is sometimes seen as a cross. All the other punches are some of the other modifications of these punches. When given from a southpaw or orthodox stance, the jab is a straight punch given with the lead hand. It moves directly out from the shoulder. The hook is also given with the lead hand. It is a short lateral movement of fist and arm, with the wrist twisted inward and the elbow bent at the moment of impact. The uppercut is an upward blow given from the toes' direction with either of the hands. The straight left or right is given at shoulder level with the backhand. This is typical as a follow-up to the jab, on the other hand.
In bare-knuckle boxing, the importance is placed on the power of the punch. This is because the fights typically end only when one of the fighters cannot continue. The hands were held in front of the body in no exact position. The footwork was non-existent. With the advent of fights decided on points and padded gloves, footwork and boxing skills became very important. Until Muhammad Ali, the heavyweight did not move very quickly. But at his peak, Ali was the swiftest and the most skillful heavyweight champ of all time. He dances around the ring with the arms dangling at his side. His legs remained ready to take him out of harm's way or into the punching range at will. Ali did not have a devastating punch. But he had extraordinary hand speed, and he dominated several bouts by giving rapid sequences of blows.
Conclusion
The style remains a matter of personal choice. But the most vital aspects of modern boxing have been effective counterpunching, combination punching, good defensive head movement, and swift lateral movement. This has all been possible with the evolution of boxing rules over time.