Boxing Rules (Amateur Boxing vs Professional Boxing)

1. Rules for Amateur boxing matches, and

2. Rules for professional boxing.

In boxing they have different sets of boxing rules :

It is important to say that there’s different types of rules for each type of boxing in different countries, not to mention that in the Olympics there is a different set of rules that govern the sport.

Professional Boxing Rules vs Amateur Boxing Rules

There’s differences in the rules of boxing that govern professional & amateur boxing.

1. Number of rounds

2. Period ( time) of each round

3. The way the referee decides each round

Weight Classes

There’s nine weight classes, & the class of a boxer is determined by body weight. The nine weight classes are the following:

* Straw weight,

* Fly weight,

* Bantam weight,

* Feather weight,

* Lightweight,

* Welterweight,

* Middleweight,

* Light heavyweight,

* Heavyweight.

Ring

The boxing match takes place in a square ring. The ring size for amateur matches is 16 – twenty square feet & for professional boxing is 16 to 24 square feet. Also the ring floor ought to have felt or foam rubber covered by canvas.

Boxer’s equipment

Before entering the ring the boxer ought to wrap his/her hands with cloth bandages, & then put on leather gloves. Note that in some US states, there’s gloves without thumbs in order to reduce potential eye injury. Boxers wear trunks & boxing shoes. Finally a mouthpiece is worn in order to protect the teeth, & an athletic cup to protect the groin area from hits below the belt. The main difference between amateur & professional matches is that in amateur matches boxers wear protective head gear but not in professional fights.

Number of Rounds

Another major difference between amateur and professional boxing is the number of rounds and their period. In professional matches the number of rounds is between four to 15 rounds, and last minutes each with a minute break between rounds. In amateur matches the number of rounds is rounds and last minutes each, or rounds that last minutes each.

Referee/ Timekeeper

In professional and amateur boxing matches are monitored by referee who is the only person allowed inside the ring with the boxers in the work of rounds. The duty of the referee is to make sure that both boxers fight by the rules, and if not then they can disqualify a boxer for serious violations of the rules, or deduct points for lesser violations. There’s also judges that sit outside the ring and score the matches. In amateur matches there’s judges, and in professional matches there’s or judges. A person known as the timekeeper is always present who signals a bell at the beginning and finish of each round. Finally a physician is also necessary at sanctioned events.

Main Rules

* There’s some basic boxing rules and when a boxer breaks (it is called foul) them then the referee gives a warning and then can deduct points for each foul and for lots of fouls the referee can receive a boxer disqualified. Some main boxing rules are:

* You cannot hit your opponent below the belt – or the belt line.

* You cannot hit your opponent in the back of the head.

* You cannot hit an opponent who is down.

* You cannot hit an opponent who is on his knees, or even on knee.

* Kicking, tripping, holding, hitting an opponents eye with a thumb, wrestling, head butting, and hitting with the elbows, the forearm, or the inside of the glove is not allowed.

Deciding the winner

Before the fight starts each boxer is assigned a corner that he/she and his/her coaches and managers use between rounds. When a boxer is knocked down, the referee begins the count and if the boxer gets back up before the referee reaches the count of0, the fight continues. In case when boxer is knocked down, the other boxer must go to the farthest neutral corner.( note that the assigned corners are not neutral corners)

In some cases in professional boxing there is a compulsory eight count, which means that the fight cannot resume until the referee reaches a count of eight. On the other hand in amateur boxing , if a boxer is knocked down times in round, the other boxer wins on a TKO (technical knockout). Also if the referee reaches the ten-count after a knockdown, the other boxer wins.

Another way in deciding the winner is by points scored by the judges aka decision. In professional boxing a match can finish in a draw meaning no declared winner, but that cannot happen in amateur boxing matches. The decision is based on a point technique or a round technique. The round technique has the judges individually determining a winner after each round. At the finish of the fight, the boxer who won the most rounds, as judged individually by the judges, wins the match.

On the other hand when using a point technique, points are awarded based on performance. There’s several different point systems, but the most often used is the twenty point technique. Each judge awards the winner of a round0 points, and the loser receives up to nineteen points for that round – based on his performance. If there was no determined winner, each boxer gets twenty points. At the finish of the match, all the judges points are tallied, and the boxer with the most points wins.