sweetscienceknowledge

[sweetscienceknowledge]

Favourite Fighter Profile (Saul “Canelo” Alvarez)

Saul "Canelo" Alvarez is a boxer fighting out of Mexico. Canelo started his professional boxing career when he was only 15, intending to put food on the table for his family. Fast forward to the future, Canelo is currently being considered as the number 1 pound for pound boxer of today's era. Having faced against the likeness of Floyd Mayweather, Amir Khan, Gennady Golovkin, Miguel Cotto and many others, Canelo will without a doubt make it into Boxing's Hall of Fame when he retires one day.

Photo courtesy of Google search.

Throughout the 15 years of his professional boxing career, Canelo had only suffered 1 defeat; and it was against Floyd Mayweather. Although he was taken to a Boxing clinic by Floyd, Canelo showed that he has what it takes to stand in the ring against arguably the best boxer of the Pacquiao-Mayweather era. Following the defeat, Canelo showed tremendous improvements in terms of his boxing capabilities, especially in the aspect of defence. Many people speculated that this improvement was the result of him studying Floyd Mayweather.

Photo courtesy of Google search, showing a moment during the Mayweather vs Canelo fight, (2013).

Canelo had also gifted the sport of Boxing with one of the most anticipated rivalries ever. In this case, it was between him and Gennady "Triple G" Golovkin. These two were considered to be the best boxers in the Middleweight division. What made it even more interesting was the fact that they had a playstyle that was perfectly contrasting with one another. The first fight they had was ruled as a draw whereas, for the second one, Canelo came out victorious (although there were a lot of controversies behind the decision).

Photo courtesy of Google search, showing Canelo vs Triple G, (2017).

As of right now, Canelo has moved up to the Light Heavyweight division, intending to conquer the division the same way he conquered Light Welterweight, Welterweight, Light Middleweight, Middleweight and Super Middleweight. … Yes. That is indeed how dominant Canelo is.

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Favourite Fighter Profile (Naoya Inoue)

Naoya Inoue, or most commonly dubbed as "The Monster", is a boxer fighting out of Japan in the bantamweight division. He is currently considered to be one of the most dominant boxers of today, with his professional record being 20 wins (17 by knockouts) with 0 loses. Even before making his US debut under Top Rank promotions, the name "Naoya Inoue" was already sending shivers down the spines of other boxers sharing the same weightclass as him. This is because he had announced his presence in the most challenging yet, rewarding method ever. And that was by successfully winning the Ali Trophy cup against the best of the bests.

Image courtesy of Google search, showing Naoya celebrating his knockout victory against Puerto Rico’s Emmanuel Rodriguez, Ali Trophy (2019).

One of the most fascinating traits about Naoya is his constant attack on the body of his opponents. Most of his wins were scored by knocking down his opponents with painful liver shots. If you've ever been hit with one before, you should know that the pain is unbearably painful. This constant attack to the body causes his opponents to be wary of his body shots, which create gaps in their defenses that can be easily exploited by experienced fighters like Naoya Inoue.

Naoya's most recent fight was on the 31st of October against Australia's Jason "Mayhem" Moloney; a fighter that most thought would prove to be a challenge for Naoya. Instead, Naoya won the match in the most convincing way possible (He dominated every round and eventually knocked out Moloney towards the end of the 7th round). Currently, Nonito Donaire is the only one that was able to put up a fight against the Monster.

Image courtesy of Google search; showing moments after Australia’s Jason Moloney got knocked out from a right hand counter from Naoya Inoue at the end of the 7th round.

Image courtesy of Google; showing a moment captured during the match between Naoya Inoue and Philippine’s Nonito Donaire, Ali Trophy (2019).

In an interview conducted after the fight with Jason Moloney, Naoya let the world know that he is planning to unify all the Bantamweight championship belts as soon as possible. In other words, Naoya is planning to seize all the belts from those holding them at the moment.

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Favourite Fighter Profile (Vasily Lomachenko)

Vasily Lomachenko is considered by many as a boxer that has elevated the sport of Boxing to a whole other level. Representing Ukraine, Lomachenko had won 2 consecutive gold medals in the Olympics of 2008 (Beijing) and 2012 (Britain). Before transitioning to the professional league, Lomachenko had managed to rack up a whopping amateur boxing record of 397 bouts, 396 of which he won. The only loss he had on his amateur record was against Albert Selimov, a Russian boxer. Despite the controversial decision loss to Selimov, Lomachenko showed that he was the better boxer when they met once again in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Image courtesy of Google search

One of the most impressive traits that Lomachenko possess is the ability to use angles at will against his opponents. Being a southpaw boxer, it is already hard enough for others to beat him. Add that with his superior ability to manipulate angles, he becomes almost impossible to beat.

Before his recent fight against Teofimo Lopez, Lomachenko held a professional record of 14 wins, 1 loses. Similar to what happened during his amateur years, the only loss he had was highly controversial. Lomachenko was also the World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Council (WBC) and World Boxing Organisation (WBO) lightweight champion of the world. His loss to Lopez however, meant that he had to give Lopez all of the titles. Once again, this loss had sparked debates around the world. While it was clear that Loma stalled the rounds leading up to the 6th, the rounds that follow (7th to 12th) showed Lomachenko enforcing his wills against Lopez. Most people scored the fight a draw, or a split decision win for Lopez at most. But instead, Lopez was granted a unanimous decision victory, with the judges' scorecards showing a huge difference in overall scores between Lomachenko and Teofimo Lopez. Hence, the controversy.

Image courtesy of Google search

Terminology:

Split decision victory - One side wins with only 2 out of the 3 judges voting in favour of the person.

Unanimous decision victory - All 3 judges are in favour of the winner.

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Understanding Boxing as A Spectator

Thinking of watching Boxing but don't know where to start? You came to the right place. In order to enjoy watching Boxing, you need to understand the structure of the sport first (which can be argued to be quite challenging due to the complexity. It can take up to a few months of constant involvement in Boxing to really understand how it works).

Boxing is more or less similar to other sports that include the use of martial arts; notably Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). To make it easier to understand, I will be using the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) as an example for MMA. UFC is one of the most widely known promotional body for Mixed Martial Arts. Other promotional bodies include ONE Championship, Bellator MMA and many others. Similarly, the promotional bodies in the sport of Boxing are Top Rank, Showtime Boxing and Golden Boy Promotions to name a few.

In UFC, there exist many different weight classes, ranging from Bantamweight, up to Super Heavyweight. These weight classes exist to keep the competitions fair. A fighter that weighs 60kg will be competing against those in the same weight category and not against those in lighter or heavier weight classes. The same applies to Boxing.

However, in Boxing, there exist several governing bodies; with the most widely regarded ones being the World Boxing Council (WBC), the World Boxing Organisation (WBO) and the International Boxing Federation (IBF). These governing bodies are responsible for sanctioning bouts (matches) and awarding championship belts.

With that being said, each governing bodies have their own championship belts for each weight classes. These championship belts are open for grab by any boxers regardless of which promotions they represent; with the only requirement being that they need to work towards climbing the ranking system to be able to challenge the current belt holders. This is really the only thing that makes watching Boxing different than watching MMA. In MMA, the promotional bodies are the ones to create championship belts. UFC has their own belts, ONE has their own belts and Bellator too. In Boxing, the promotional bodies only exist to promote fighters. The championship belts are handled by the governing bodies (WBA, WBC, IBF). Winning a championship bout and becoming a titleholder in Boxing means that you have dominated other fighters across different promotions. Winning a championship belt in MMA on the other hand, only means that you have dominated a considerably smaller group of fighters since you are fighting amongst yourselves rather than amongst the entire rosters of the MMA world.

The intention of this post is not to discredit the efforts of MMA fighters and compare them to Boxers. I understand that these two are two different sports. It is merely to point out the differences between the structure of the two to make it easier to understand how the sport of Boxing works (in terms of watching them).

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Sparring Etiquette

When hearing the word "Sparring", it is very likely that most people will automatically assume it to be a match, where two sparring partners would go to war with one another. You can't really blame them though. There has been a lot of videos showing sparring partners getting badly beaten up by the other, sometimes up to the point of them getting knocked unconscious. One of the most infamous hotspots where these videos are taken and uploaded from is the Mayweather Boxing Gym.

Located in Las Vegas, the gym is considered to have a bad reputation amongst the majority of both professional and amateur boxers, mainly because of how the sparring sessions are conducted there. With just a simple search, you can easily see videos of boxers aggressively knocking each other out in "sparring" sessions organised by the gym.

The reason this is such a big issue is that they are promoting the wrong way of sparring. Those who have been practising Boxing and have been training or trained under coaches with principles would know not to replicate the way those boxers from the Mayweather gym. However, it is the general audience that is at risk of imitating them. With little knowledge regarding the possible outcomes of such sparring, those who initiate in such thing could end up getting injured, or worst-case scenario, they could end up dead. There have been a lot of instances where untrained boxers would put full power behind what they assume to be their "punches", trying to knock the other person down for the sake of satisfying their ego. The outcomes of these instances are usually unpleasant.

Fortunately enough, here in Brunei Darussalam, the majority of aspiring fighters understand the dangers of hard sparrings. Most of the sparring sessions I've been to would have fighters limit their punches to either below 70%, or 50% power. This way, the safety of each person is secured and the chances of injuries are kept to a minimal. This is very important in the longevity of one's boxing career.

Here are some sparring etiquettes that should be able to educate people about the real nature of sparring.

Never go full power on your sparring partner. It is recommended to keep your punching power below 70% for sparring sessions unless agreed upon. The purpose of sparring is to allow boxers the opportunity to apply what they have learned on a real moving "opponent". Limiting punching power to below 70% will allow both sides to do just this without having to worry about getting themselves injured. Hard sparrings (above 70% power) are generally recommended once or twice at most. Preferably within the final weeks leading up to a fight so boxers can be accustomed to getting hit with hard shots. Other than this, hard sparrings will only cause unnecessary injuries, and will greatly affect the longevity of one's boxing career. Remember, CTE (brain damage) is real.

Never mistake your partner's light punches as their weakness Like what has been mentioned in the previous point, it is crucial for boxers to keep their punches light during sparring sessions. For some reason, however, some people tend to think highly of themselves because they can "take the punches" thrown by their partners. They would start walking their partner down and neglect the defensive aspect of the sport. Never do this. Remember, the only reason their punches are bearable is because they agreed to put their ego aside and go light, as what they should do. Respect your partner's willingness to abide by the proper sparring etiquette and spar with them properly.

All in all, sparring is just another crucial tool for boxers to sharpen their skills. It is an opportunity where one can learn ways to implement new things. Therefore, sparring sessions should be treated like a lesson, rather than an actual match. There won't be any room for improvements if you constantly have to worry about getting knocked out in a setting that is meant to help you learn.

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Jumping Rope (A Boxer’s Tool)

One of the fundamentals required for a strong foundation in boxing is to jump rope. It is an activity that offers a lot of beneficial outcomes to those willing to put the time to practice it. The most common misconception about jumping rope, however, is that it is perceived as rather "bland" and therefore, not worth practising. Most people tend to believe that there is nothing more to jumping rope than just jumping like how they normally would when they were little.

But what if I told you that jumping rope is actually one of the most flashiest things you can do out there? Take a look.

Videos are courtesy of Rush Athletics on YouTube

Back to boxing. Jumping rope allows a person to improve their overall coordination so they can move effortlessly in the ring. A person's coordination can be seen from how well they can sync the movement of their hands and feet during complicated movements. Jumping rope provides a whole variety of complex movements that require hours of practice to perform cleanly. Therefore, it is considered as a perfect tool to help a boxer hone and sharpen their coordination.

Aside from that, jumping rope also helps a boxer build endurance, especially in the shoulders and legs. Without a strong pair of shoulders, a boxer will unlikely be able to keep their hands up to defend themselves against the punches thrown by the opponent. Similarly, without a strong pair of legs, a boxer will start to become increasingly less mobile throughout the rounds, which would make them an easy target for the opponent to land punches on. This is why a lot of boxers tend to incorporate jumping rope as part of their warm-up before the start of every session. Not only does it warm up the muscles, but it also helps in building endurance when done daily over a long period of time. The average boxer should be able to skip (another term for jumping rope) for approximately 15 minutes straight without getting too tired. In the gym I go to, we usually do 3 rounds of 1 minute and 30 seconds of skipping for every warm-up session. This is the standard that has been set in most boxing gyms in Brunei. Not too short, and not too long. Just enough to get people sweating and warmed up before starting the actual class.

Overall, jumping rope is a fun thing to do, especially when you know how to do the various tricks shown in the videos above. My personal favourite sequence is boxer's skip, high knees, criss cross and double unders, all while doing the side to side transition in between each move.

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Jabgym Sparring

Ah, Jabgym... the most prestigious boxing gym the nation has to offer. Established and made available to the public in early 2020, the gym is owned by none other than Prince Mateen himself, as a way to showcase his passion for the sport and to elevate boxing further in the local scene.

On 28th August, we attended the gym’s first-ever invitational sparring session. It was funny how we were the first ones to get there despite being the furthest from the gym (Wolfpack, Tutong). So we went on and took our time putting on our boxing gears and messed around with the stuff in the changing room (gotta be honest, the changing rooms are way more luxurious than any of the changing rooms I've been to). By the time we were done, everyone else was already in the ring getting warmed up for sparring. ... I guess we took our time a little too long.

During the session, my right eye got poked by some of the punches thrown at me that left me temporarily blinded in one eye (not literally, just wasn’t able to see clearly since it was painful). Which... became part of the reason I ate clean shots to the mouth that left me looking even worse. Lex, the sparring coordinator, pointed out that I looked the worst after the session and everyone had a good laugh.

Overall, it was a great experience as it allowed us to see where we stand among other aspiring boxers from different gyms. Also, sparring sessions like this are the only closest thing we can get to a real competitive match for now, since the real thing will be absent until the whole Covid-19 situation has settled down.

As of right now, public sparring session hasn't been made as an official part of the gym's timetable yet since they are still in the trial-and-error phase. Hence, it is a huge honour to be able to participate in the works happening behind the scene. What's more exciting is the fact that they're hosting another invitational sparring session this upcoming Friday. We go again boys!

A picture taken after the sparring session. Peek at the boys reppin’ Wolfpack on the left side of the picture!

Reference(s):

1. Jabgym photo - Jabgym’s Facebook Page.

2. Sparring photo - Google drive link shared by the photographer(s).

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Getting hit. Does it hurt?

Have you ever wondered what it feels like to get hit? A weird thing to think about but I bet you've thought about this at least once in your life. Lucky you, you don't have to go through the process to know what it feels like.

This goes back to early 2019 when I decided to join an upcoming boxing tournament. I was only 4 months into learning boxing but I was pretty eager to start sparring. I informed my coach regarding my participation and he agreed to personally coach me (along with a few others that were also joining). I was told that I would be having my first sparring session within the next few days so my condition could be assessed. The day came and I finished the session with a bloody nose. ... A little too much blood that the sight almost made my partner threw up.

But the real question is, did it hurt? Not really. It was more frustrating than it was "hurting" when I got hit on the head (especially around the face). I've read somewhere that the reason for this was because of the adrenaline being released throughout the body during fight or flight situations. In other words, the pain was being "cushioned" by the adrenaline. As for the bloody nose, that was pretty much my fault. I got so nervous I forgot how to walk. I literally stood there frozen for the entire duration of the sparring! But of course, there's a reason why boxing is considered a brutal sport. The accumulated damage to the head could eventually result in brain injury if left unchecked. Hence, it is important to keep your defensive game sharp.

Aside from the head, the body also serves as a target in both boxing and real-life situations. One clean shot to the liver will have you stumbling on the ground, incapacitated. The funny thing is, the shot doesn't even have to be hard. Just a perfectly placed shot to the liver, even with very little power, is enough to force your body to shut down. How painful you ask? It is excruciatingly painful. ... And it takes a different kind of pain to make me resort to using big words such as "excruciating" to describe it. Here's me being hit with a clean liver shot for your entertainment.

Footage from a sparring session against the reigning heavyweight in Brunei.

All in all, although getting hit on the face is bearable, you should never allow anyone, ANYONE, to do so unless you are participating in combat sports. Even so, you and your partner will still need to keep your punching power below 30% when going to the head. As for getting hit on the body, try your best to protect your liver. ... What's that? You don't know how to do so? Drop by to any one of the boxing gyms around you to learn how! ;)

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Getting Started In Boxing

When thinking about starting boxing, I see a considerably large number of people struggle with quite a lot of things. For instance, the community over at Reddit's amateur boxing group tend to get bombarded with questions such as "What should I do first before joining a boxing gym?", "Is this boxing gym good for me?", "am I too early/late to start boxing?". The most common answer to these kinds of questions is to really "just do it!" (LaBeouf, 2015). You're a legend if you understood that reference. 

But really; you're better off doing whatever it is that you're thinking about rather than wasting a large amount of your time overthinking them (this is of course, only limited to the good side of things. I do not condone harmful behaviours).

Although the thought of coming to a boxing gym can be intimidating at first, there's no need for you to feel the pressure to prepare in advanced when joining one. Everything from your overall fitness to your cardio will be trained and enhanced through the workouts offered by boxing-related classes. Unfortunately, I did the mistake of giving in into the pressure when I first started. 

I remember getting myself a set of boxing gloves and a punching bag so I can familiarise myself with some of the basic stuff from watching Youtube videos. Reason for this was because I didn't want to look awkward and be a burden to the people who wanted to put in legitimate work there. This was really more harm than good. Had I went straight to joining a boxing gym, I wouldn't have had to go through multiple injuries that could have easily been prevented. At the end of the day, one of the reasons why these boxing gyms exist in the first place is to educate the people regarding the sport. So fret not for whatever it is that you need, you will most likely find from any of the coaches. 

Boxing-related Gears

Speaking of boxing gloves... I highly advise you to avoid purchasing the ones that you see lying around in regular shops (Hua Huo, Imperial Sports etc). Unless you're planning to stick to beginner-friendly classes, you will probably have to order your gloves (and handwraps) from official online websites. The reason I don't recommend buying from local stores (unless they are sold by local combat gyms) is largely because the products are usually not authentic. There's an ample amount of chance that they were ordered in bulk from websites such as Aliexpress. You will be susceptible to injuries if you were to use these products on high-intensity workouts due to the nature of their quality. But then again, you don't necessarily have to buy your own pair of gloves and handwraps when just starting out. There should be plenty of them lying around in most of the boxing gyms here available for beginners to use. 

The main point I'm trying to get across is that you should just try to attend at least 1 session, to see if you're really interested in the sport or just curious. Simply come over to any of the gyms closest to your area. Most of them would usually offer a cheaper price for a beginner class session but it really depends on the gym. You'll be doing yourself a whole lot of favour by just showing up and trying, rather than sitting back and showering yourself with thoughts. JUST, DO, I--.

Images used are taken from google search.

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Boxing in Brunei Darussalam

The boxing scene in Brunei Darussalam at the moment is still relatively fresh. Although Brunei in the past has had an established national boxing team, the sport itself, unfortunately, became inactive in the country. It was not until around 2017 when the local boxing scene witnessed its revival; with the establishment of the Brunei Boxing Association (https://www.instagram.com/bruneiboxing.bn/).

Currently, the leading boxing gym in Brunei is Khalifa Mixed Martial Arts. Established in late 2017, the gym is led by two of the nation's pioneers in professional mixed martial arts; Ahmed Faez Anuar and Hidayat Abdul. The gym has produced multiple amateur boxing standouts such as Kevin Lee, Faiz Ismail and Asde Nawang, all three of which had competed for both local and international competitions.

Local competitions are usually held multiple times a year; hosted by the various boxing gyms in Brunei in conjunction with the Brunei Boxing Association. The very first amateur boxing competition held after prolonged inactivity was the Pahlawan Amateur Boxing Competition. It was hosted by the Pahlawan Boxing Club with the venue located at Sungai Kebun Complex. The competition was attended by multiple gyms, each represented by their own list of boxers. The event was a success in marking the revival of Brunei's boxing scene. From there, we were able to see new talents that continued to increase in numbers, leading up to the latest boxing competition held last November (2019) by House of Fitness.

Images from the Pahlawan Amateur Boxing Competition (2017).

Multiple events had also been held by Strike Promotions Brunei; a promotion serving as a platform to showcase the combat sports scene in the country. Their event, "Strike Redemption" was a massive success. They had international competitors from various gyms all over Southeast Asia coming to participate. Although the competition was not boxing-specific, I figured it is no less appropriate to include them as their contribution to expanding the combat scene in Brunei as a whole is crystal clear. Unfortunately, due to the Covid-19 situation happening all around the world, most (if not all) boxing competitions are currently being postponed until the situation has de-escalated. During normal circumstances, however, you should be expecting boxing competitions in Brunei to be held in late March, late July and late November each year. Note that down if you're planning to participate in the near future.

Pictures taken from Strike: Redemption (9th-10th March, 2019).

Adding more to the increasing popularity of the sport in Brunei, Raj Sundra, a notable Malaysian boxing coach, was invited by the Brunei Boxing Association to share his knowledge of the sweet science to local boxers. Below are some images that were taken during his visit to Brunei.

Coach Sundra’s visit to Wolfpack Boxing Gym (3rd August, 2019).

Coach Sundra’s visit to Khalifa Mixed Martial Arts (4th August, 2019).

Coach Sundra’s visit to ADN Boxing Gym for inter-gym sparring session (4th August, 2019).

Overall, the boxing community in Brunei Darussalam is continuing to expand. Each year, increasing numbers of new faces can be seen taking part in various competitions; both locally and internationally. The future of the sport in Brunei is bright and is at its all-time high. Hence, if you're planning to contribute, there's never been a better time than now!

Images used are taken from these respectful Instagram accounts:

https://www.instagram.com/pahlawanboxingclub/

https://www.instagram.com/bruneiboxing.bn/

https://www.instagram.com/strike.bn/

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by WOLFPACK (@wolfpack.bn) on May 27, 2018 at 7:04am PDT

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Is Boxing A Dangerous Sport?

Imagine yourself being placed against an opponent whose intention is to hurt you. No one can convince your opponent to do otherwise. You have nowhere to run as you are trapped in a squared circle surrounded by ropes. The only possible way for you to escape the situation is to stand your ground. You hear the bell ring and now you know very well one of you is about to get hurt. But good news; that isn't necessarily always the case.

In boxing, competing isn't the only way to learn the sport. For instance, various boxing gyms around Brunei Darussalam offers boxercise classes that allow people to enjoy the sport without having to worry about getting hit. These classes typically cover basic drills on the heavy bag, lasting for as long as 45 minutes up to an hour or more (Read below for the list of gyms). This is a great way for many beginners to familiarise themselves with the fundamentals of the sweet science. Boxercise classes are also great investments for people wanting to get fit; as the intensity of these classes are proven to be higher than most basic drills out there.  In short, boxing is a very safe sport if you leave out the competitive side of it.

However, that doesn't mean boxing as a whole is a lethal sport. Similar to other sports, people are prone to suffer from sports-related injuries. Therefore, they must practice safety precautions to minimise the chances of that happening. The way you do this in boxing is to bear in mind the defensive aspect of the sport. The more punches you can deflect, the fewer chances you will get injured.

A lot of boxers tend to make the mistake of focusing mostly on their offence while neglecting their defence. As a result, they get hit twice as much. If you are defensively responsible, your opponent will find it challenging to land any clean punches on you; which in turn will significantly reduce your chances of getting hurt. Some example of defences in boxing includes blocking, parrying, slipping and even something as simple as moving out of the way. But these will all be covered in another blog post that will be published shortly.

Ultimately, the extent to which boxing is safe or not depends on the individual practising the craft. If it's for fitness, then the only thing you have to worry about is the harm it will be causing to your calories. If it's for competitions, then it comes down to the individual's defensive capabilities to keep themselves safe in the ring.

List of notable boxing gyms in Brunei Darussalam:

Khalifa MMA (Bandar Seri Begawan)

Jab Gym (Bandar Seri Begawan)

Wolfpack MMA (Tutong)

Excelean Fitness Gym (Tutong)

... and a lot more but these are the ones I’m most familiar with.

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Boxing (A Brief Introduction)

Boxing is one of the few sports that has been around since millennium ago. According to Collins et al. (2020), the history of the sport can be traced back to as early as the 3rd millennium BCE; where boxing was depicted as bare-knuckle contests by the people of Egypt and the Middle East. Similar to everything else, the sport too, had undergone massive changes as time progressed; which makes the present version of boxing entirely different from the one that existed back then.

Today, boxing is comprised of 2 different types; amateur boxing and professional boxing. Amateur boxing is more suited towards up-and-coming boxers. It consists of fewer rounds (3 rounds) and is usually won via outscoring opponents in points. This format is designed mainly for tournaments where amateur boxers compete against one another to win medals and recognition; as can be seen in the Olympics (dubbed as the peak of the amateur boxing scene). 

These tournaments are more often than not treated as an opportunity to represent; be it to represent one's boxing gym in local competitions, or to represent a whole country in prestige international tournaments such as that of the Olympics and Southeast Asian Games. 

Image taken from the London Olympics 2012.

Professional boxing, on the other hand, is the one that is most familiar to the general public. It differs from amateur boxing to a great extent. In professional boxing, boxers compete in a match with rounds ranging from a minimum of 4 rounds (for new professionals) up to a maximum of 12 rounds (reserved for when championship belts are at stake). Due to the larger number of rounds, professional boxers tend to fight at a much-controlled pace, opposite to the quick pace practised in the amateur scene. These matches are often won through either technical knockouts; in which the opponent is conscious but unable to proceed, or through pure knockouts.

These knockouts are often the result of months of preparations, where boxers train to reach their peak performances, tailored to expose and utilise the opposition's weaknesses based on careful and in-depth analysis of their boxing style.

Image taken from the professional boxing match between Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield (9th November, 1996).

Although amateur boxing lacks decisive wins via knockouts, they often make up for it through constant non-stop actions. This is arguably one of the most intriguing aspects of the amateur boxing scene. Competitors are required to "let their hands go" more frequently as they only have 3 rounds to convince the judges of who the more dominant boxer is. This is especially true when elite amateurs (those with excellent boxing portfolio) are put against one another. Below is a video example of a match between elite-level amateurs Ryan Garcia (Red) and Vergil Ortiz (Blue).

Amateur bout between Ryan Garcia and Vergil Ortiz.

Regardless of the differences between amateur and professional boxing, the beauty of the craft showcased by the competitors will always add to the list of reasons as to why boxing is one of the most reputable and thrilling sports of this present day.

Do you have any favourite boxer? Comment below who and why!

Reference(s):

1. Collins, N., Hauser, T., Krystal, A., Olver, R., Poliakoff, M., Sammons, J. T., & Wallenfeldt, E. C. (2020, May 14th). Boxing History, Rules & Notable Fighters. Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/sports/boxing

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