
What is an exhibition fight in boxing?
An exhibition fight is a contact sports non-profit event, usually a boxing fight in which participants fight, normally for three rounds. They may wear large gloves to minimize punch harm or impact on the combatants, headgear, and non-boxing related clothing. Many exhibition fights involve popular current or former world...
What are the 4 boxing sanctioning bodies?
The Four Major Sanctioning Bodies. Other titles and organizations include: NABF (North American Boxing Federation), European Boxing Union (EBU), British Boxing Board of Control (BBBoC) and other regional organizations.
What does a non-sanctioned WWE match mean?
When the protege is humiliated by the guru, things are bound to get bad. Does it ring a bell? Yes, it does. Not so long ago, Seth Rollins was one of Triple H ’s trusted confederates, when he turned heel at his behest, going against the other members of The Shield.
Why do boxers wear gloves in exhibition fights?
They may wear large gloves to minimize punch harm or impact on the combatants, headgear, and non-boxing related clothing. Many exhibition fights involve popular current or former world champions, and exhibition bouts are usually carried out for charity purposes or for the public's entertainment.

How long is a sanctioned boxing match?
Professional bouts are limited to a maximum of twelve rounds, where each round last 3 minutes for men, 2 minutes for women. Most are fought over four to ten rounds depending upon the experience of the boxers.
Is boxing sanctioned?
The IBF, WBA, WBC and WBO are regarded as the four major sanctioning bodies in boxing. Each has their own champions and rankings. One of the things they don't do is rank champions in the other organizations, and that leads to a host of problems.
What does a non sanctioned fight mean?
: lacking effective or authoritative approval or consent : not sanctioned an unsanctioned boxing match …
What can you get disqualified for in boxing?
Most disqualifications happen for repeated intentional fouling such as headbutting, low blows, rabbit punches, biting and the like. Typically, a referee will first verbally warn offenders or direct a point deduction first before disqualifying a boxer.
What makes a fight sanctioned?
A sanctioned boxing match is, put simply, a bout approved and overseen by your state commission.
Why does boxing have so many sanctioning bodies?
Sanctioning bodies stand to make a lot more money by giving away more belts than one. Plus, any boxing event with 'world title' on the poster is likely to sell a lot more tickets.
Do boxers get drug tested after the fight?
There is no consistent drug-testing in boxing. Some state athletic commissions test on their own. The WBC has its “Clean Boxer Program,” but many of the fighters in it say they have never been tested. Many boxers sign up to be tested by the Voluntary Anti-Doping Agency (VADA).
Can a doctor stop a boxing match?
As per the Uniform Boxing Rules (approved August 25, 2001, Amended August 2, 2002, Amended July 3, 2008), the referee is the sole arbiter of a bout and is the only individual authorized to stop a contest.
What is a sanctioned race?
Sanctioned race means an off-highway vehicle race conducted on a closed course and sponsored and sanctioned by an organization carrying liability insurance in at least the amounts specified by the division under Subsection (5) covering all activities associated with the race.
Do boxers get paid if they get disqualified?
The boxer who lost will still receive the purse they negotiated before the fight, but it may be significantly less than the winners. This can be affected by things such as popularity and sponsors. In some cases, it can be a 55/45 % split of the purse between the winner and loser.
What punches are illegal in boxing?
Boxing Illegal moves No hitting with an open glove, the wrist, the backhand, or the side of the hand. No hitting below the belt, hold, kick, head-butt, trip wrestle, bite, or push your opponent. Throwing a punch while holding on to the ropes to get leverage is an illegal boxing move.
What happens if a boxer hits below the belt?
(1) The Boxer is fit to continue: the Referee may give a warning to the offender and the Bout will continue. (2) The Boxer is unfit to continue: the opponent will be declared the winner of the Bout by RSC-I. the Supervisor.
How much are boxing sanctioning fees?
Sanctioning Fees Submitted by Promoter International Title: $1,500 USD (Including championship belt and shipping costs). All-Americas Titles: $1,500 USD (Including championship belt and shipping costs). Youth World Title: $1,500 USD (Including championship belt and shipping costs).
Are Russian boxers allowed to fight?
The WBA, whose belt Bivol has held since 2017, continue to allow Russian fighters to compete but they have announced that Russian and Belarusian boxers won't be allowed to enter the ring with their flag, the national anthem won't be played and the boxers' country won't be named.
Do boxers get drug tested after the fight?
There is no consistent drug-testing in boxing. Some state athletic commissions test on their own. The WBC has its “Clean Boxer Program,” but many of the fighters in it say they have never been tested. Many boxers sign up to be tested by the Voluntary Anti-Doping Agency (VADA).
Do amatuer boxers get drug tested?
In California, both participants in every world and state championship bout are drug-tested.
The Build Up
One important thing to know is that no fight exists in a vacuum, and context matters. For my first fight, I was 19 years old and had already been training for about 6 months. I remember my walking into the stadium where the matches for this event were being held--a small event center in Huntsville thinking...
Round 1
The first round of the fight was, to be honest, absolute chaos.
The Corner
As I headed back to my corner after the first round, I was feeling good. I was moving well, I had knocked down my opponent, and I hadn’t gotten hit much.
Round 2
When the whistle for round 2 blew, I came out strong, throwing jabs and pivoting, while my opponent calmed down a bit and was looking to sit on a big counter right cross.
The Rocky Moment
After almost getting knocked out after losing focus, I went back to the corner much more humble. My coach told me the hard truth: I had lost that round. I nodded and started beating myself up when he dumped a couple of ice cubes down my shirt and rapped me on the head to get me to listen.
Round 3
At the start of the final round I was beginning to feel the fatigue set in. Three minutes doesn’t sound like a long time, but when you’re fighting an actual opponent in the ring, those three one-minute rounds that you fight in the beginning of an amateur career can feel like an hour.
The Bell
At the bell, I did exactly what I was told to do in a sanctioned fight. I had my gloves and hand wraps removed, shook hands with my opponent’s team, and immediately let the ringside doctor examine me for injuries or signs of concussion.
What is the ABC in boxing?
Whether or not the ABC acronym was purposely chosen to mock the alphabet soup mess of the sanctioning bodies in boxing or not may be debated, but the Association of Boxing Commissions plays a very prominent role in the sport. Most notably, it is responsible for the famous “unified rules” used in championship bouts, which you probably recognize from Harold Lederman on HBO citing, “…using the unified rules of the Association of Boxing Commissions!” It’s also responsible for creating standards for fighter safety, training, officiating and judging, and more. It was formed in the 1980s.
When was the World Boxing Federation founded?
The World Boxing Foundation was established in 2004, after a previous history as the World Boxing Federation, with championship fights dating back to the early 1990s. Based out of Australia, the WBF is low on the totem pole, even amongst other low ranking organizations and sanctioning bodies.
What are the other titles of the WBO?
Other titles and organizations include: NABO (North American Boxing Organization), WBO-Latino, WBO Inter-Continental and other regional organizations.
What is the oldest sanctioning body?
The WBA is actually the oldest major sanctioning body, predating the WBC by a year, to 1962, and having an earlier history extending back as the NBA, which dates as far back as the early 1920s, if you wanted to include that somewhat separate history. The WBA has had its own share of controversies, including the usual corruption charges, and most recently, the head-scratching tactic of crowning both a regular champion and super champion within the same division. Add an interim titleholder to the mix (and they often do) and that’s three men claiming a WBA title in one weight class!
Is the sanctioning system chaotic?
Many people today feel that the sanctioning bodies are more than just chaotic, and are actually a major source of fundamental problems within the sport itself. That they’re merely looking to line their own pockets with lucrative sanctioning fees for championship fights, while taking bribes under the table to advance certain fighters through the rankings. As already mentioned, that is the stance of this website.
Why are boxing leagues corrupt?
Historically, many boxing "leagues" were corrupt and manipulated both to punish people disliked by organized crime by forcing people to participate to cleanse what would otherwise be illegal gang vigilante activities and to cheat people betting on matches by fixing the results of fights.
Why does free speech not protect contract sports?
Free speech does not protect contract sports such as boxing because the protected conduct does not primarily exist to communicate ideas, and also because the state has a compelling state interest in preventing people from physically harming each other that goes back to the oldest political theory justifications for the existence of the state in the first place by scholars such as Locke and Hobbes.
Why do we have to allow contact sports?
States allow contact sports because they choose to do so as a matter of policy, not because the right to engage in contact sports is protected by the First Amendment. There is a constitutional right to have sex with other consenting adults under the U.S. Supreme Court's Lawrence v.
Is there a right to free speech in Texas?
Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003) decision (which is not based primarily on the First Amendment right to free speech), but there is no constitutional right for consenting adults to authorize physical harm to each other in an agreed form of combat.
Is boxing a government agency?
Boxing doesn't have to be regulated by a government agency, but it generally is regulated in this way (1) because states are concerned about regulating fighting with an intent to do physical harm to the other player (which is strictly speaking against the rules even in contact sports like hockey), which would otherwise violate criminal laws unless there was a statutory exception, and (2) because they want to regulate gambling associated with the events (which, again, they wouldn't have to do, but in practice, all states completely ban gambling subject to specific regulated gambling systems, or de minimus exceptions).
Why were boxing exhibitions advertised?
Many times, official fights had to be advertised as exhibitions, due to state laws prohibiting professional boxing. As the century progressed, Jack Dempsey, Jack Johnson and others fought exhibition fights. Benny Leonard did an exhibition for the United Drive Rally on May 23, 1923.
Who boxed in the boxing booths?
In England, such boxers as Jem Mace, Jimmy Wilde and Tommy Farr boxed both official and exhibition bouts at what were called "boxing booths".
Why do boxers wear gloves?
They may wear large gloves to minimize punch harm or impact on the combatants, headgear, and non-boxing related clothing. Many exhibition fights involve popular current or former world champions, and exhibition bouts are usually carried out for charity purposes or for the public's entertainment. Exhibition fights are usually not listed as having ...
Who was the boxer in Shaq vs. O'Neal?
In 2009, recently retired boxer Óscar De La Hoya and basketball player Shaquille O'Neal held an exhibition boxing fight as an episode of the ABC television show Shaq Vs.. Late in 2014, Julio César Chávez returned to the ring for an exhibition with Vicente Sagrestano in a bout aimed at collecting toys for poor children.
When did Mike Tyson and Roy Jones fight?
On November 28, 2020, boxers Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Jr. faced each other in an exhibition fight resulting in a draw.

The Build Up
- One important thing to know is that no fight exists in a vacuum, and context matters. For my first fight, I was 19 years old and had already been trainingfor about 6 months. I remember my walking into the stadium where the matches for this event were being held--a small event center in Huntsville thinking... Man, I hope I don’t suck. When I walked ...
Round 1
- The first round of the fight was, to be honest, absolute chaos. Both myself and my opponent had experience in smoker fights (an unofficial fight not unlike a scrimmage in other sports), but any coach or fighter can tell you that fighting in a gym meet is entirely different than fighting under bright lights with your friends and family screaming, and the buzz of a live audience. Both of us i…
The Corner
- As I headed back to my corner after the first round, I was feeling good. I was moving well, I had knocked down my opponent, and I hadn’t gotten hit much. I remember grinning at my coach as I sat on the stool and asking “how’s that for an opening?” Of course, my coach brought me back to reality and started rattling off instructions, telling me to press my speed and footworkadvantage…
Round 2
- When the whistle for round 2 blew, I came out strong, throwing jabsand pivoting, while my opponent calmed down a bit and was looking to sit on a big counter right cross. I remember thinking I was moving well--right up until he landed the exact shot he was looking for: a big straight right over the top of my left that sent me off balance and running to the ropes. I spent m…
The Rocky Moment
- After almost getting knocked out after losing focus, I went back to the corner much more humble. My coach told me the hard truth: I had lost that round. I nodded and started beating myself up when he dumped a couple of ice cubes down my shirt and rapped me on the head to get me to listen. I remember exactly what he told me, “This is the last round, man. It's not about technique …
Round 3
- At the start of the final round I was beginning to feel the fatigue set in. Three minutes doesn’t sound like a long time, but when you’re fighting an actual opponent in the ring, those three one-minute rounds that you fight in the beginning of an amateur career can feel like an hour. You cannot afford to take your foot off the gas pedal--it’s a dead sprint for the whole fight. But coach …
The Bell
- At the bell, I did exactly what I was told to do in a sanctioned fight. I had my gloves and hand wraps removed, shook hands with my opponent’s team, and immediately let the ringside doctor examine me for injuries or signs of concussion. After that, I was directed to the center of the ring, and the announcer called out my name in a split decision victory. My hand was raised and I was …
A Guide to The Sanctioning Bodies of Boxing
The Four Major Sanctioning Bodies
- World Boxing Council (WBC) Official Website: wbcboxing.com Founded in 1963 and recognized today as the biggest and perhaps most notable championship title is the World Boxing Council and their famous green title strap. Not without controversy, the WBC has been involved with a large array of scandals over the yearsand has often been the target of criticism and corruption c…
The Rest of The Boxing Sanctioning Bodies
- International Boxing Organization (IBO) Official Website:www.iboboxing.com While still considered a minor belt, the IBO has had many recognizable names amongst its champions, including most recently, names like Wladimir Klitschko, Bernard Hopkins and Manny Pacquiao. It was founded in 1988, and uses computerized rankings based on a variety of factors in order to t…
Other Noteworthy Organizations
- International Boxing Association (AIBA) Official Website: www.aiba.org The AIBA is the official governing body of amateur boxing and Olympic boxing. It was founded in 1946, after the dissolution of FIBA, which dated back to 1920 but had been disbanded amidst controversy. It consists of 5 continental confederations, and hundreds of individual countries. International tour…