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The Rules and Regulations of Professional Boxing

02/22/2023

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The Rules and Regulations of Professional Boxing

Although different sanctioning bodies and state commissions apply their own variations, the most widely agreed upon standard is the UNIFIED RULES of the ASSOCIATION OF BOXING COMMISSIONS.  

The basic regulatory outline of the A.B.C. consists of:

  1. Each contest can vary, in terms of number of rounds, but the length of each round must be three minutes in length with a one minute rest in between. 
  2. The referee of a bout (often called the ”third man in the ring”) is the only official who is authorized to stop the contest. This can come by recommendation from the commissioner or advise from the ringside physician, but the referee HAS to be the one to “make the call.”
  3. A boxing match is scored and determined by three ringside judges.
  4. A Ten Point Must System is standard scoring procedure in any regulated match. This means that any fighter who wins the round must automatically be awarded 10 points and his adversary, less than that, depending on how badly he loses the round.
  5. Any fighter who gets knocked down during the course of a fight, must be given a mandatory eight count to regain his or her feet, to recover and be deemed, physically and mentally able to continue.
  6. Every athlete is required to wear a mouthpiece throughout the course of the bout. If, in the event, a fighter fails to replace his mouthpiece in between rounds or if it is knocked-out during the round, the referee is required to stop the action and replace it.
  7. There is no Standing Eight Count. (This practice is sometimes used to allow a referee to temporarily halt the action and administer a count of eight to gain time to evaluate a fighter.)
  8. The Three Knockdown Rule is not in effect. (This rule is occasionally used to protect a fighter from unnecessary punishment, assuming not that if they’ve gotten knocked down three times in any, single round, that they are not performing at their best and the bout is automatically stopped.)
  9. If, in the occasion, that a boxer is knocked completely out of the ring, he or she is allowed twenty seconds to get back in. This must happen with no assistance from his corner or spectators.  Any outside contact with the fighter, could result in a loss of points and/or are subject to evaluation by the referee.
  10. A fighter who is knocked down and is receiving a Ten Count, cannot be saved by the bell in any round. (This means that if a fighter goes down and the bell sounds, to end the round, the round continues until the fighter regains his feet, is evaluated by the referee and then deemed able or unable to continue to fight.  The sound of the bell DOES NOT automatically stop all action and outcome.)  
  11. Any injury (cuts, swelling, broken bone, etc.) incurred from a fair punch, that is severe enough to end a fight, results in a Technical Knock Out (T.K.O.) of the injured boxer.
  12. Injuries sustained from Intentional or Unintentional Fouls are handled a variety of different ways.  All rules, regulations and complete details can be found here https://www.abcboxing.com/unified-rules-boxing/
  13. Any fighter who is, unintentionally, hit with a low blow (below the waistband) will be given a reasonable amount of to recover and recuperate. The maximum amount of time allowed is five minutes.

Now, in the words of the highly renowned referee, Kenny Bayless “What I say, you must obey!”

So, let’s touch ‘em up and give the fans a good, clean fight.