The Marquess of Queensberry Rules , also known as Queensbury Rules , are a set of generally accepted rules governing the sport of boxing . Drafted in London in 1865 and published in 1867, they were so named because the 9th Marquess of Queensberry publicly endorsed the code, although they were actually written by a Welsh sportsman, John Graham Chambers , from Llanelli, Carmarthenshire. They were the first to mandate the use of gloves in boxing.
21-503: The Queensberry Rules, which eventually superseded the London Prize Ring Rules (revised in 1853), are intended for use in both professional and amateur boxing matches, unlike the less-popular American Fair Play Rules, which were strictly intended for amateur matches. In colloquial use, the term is sometimes used to refer to a sense of sportsmanship and fair play . The boxing code was written by John Graham Chambers ,
42-667: A Welshman from Llanelli, Carmarthenshire, and drafted in London in 1865, before being published in 1867 as "the Queensberry rules for the sport of boxing". At the time, boxing matches were conducted under the London Prize Ring Rules , written in 1838 and revised in 1853. Bare-knuckle fights under the London Prize Rules continued for the next several decades, although the Queensberry Rules would eventually become
63-419: A closed fist. They are prohibited as well from hitting the back, the back of the head/neck (commonly called a "rabbit-punch"), or the kidneys. They are prohibited from holding the ropes for support when punching, holding an opponent while punching, or ducking below the level of the opponent's belt. If a "clinch" – a defensive move in which a fighter wraps his arms around those of the opponent and holds on to create
84-644: A fighter is knocked down, the referee must count to eight seconds before the fight can continue. London Prize Ring Rules The London Prize Ring Rules were a list of boxing rules promulgated in 1838 and revised in 1853. These rules were based on those drafted by England's Jack Broughton in 1743 (known as the Broughton Rules ) and governed the conduct of prizefighting/ bare-knuckle boxing for over 100 years. They "introduced measures that remain in effect for professional boxing to this day, such as outlawing butting, gouging, scratching, kicking, hitting
105-401: A four-round fight) have passed. Boxers are prohibited from hitting below the belt, holding, tripping, pushing, biting, spitting on or wrestling their opponent. Boxers typically wear shorts or trunks with the waistband raised so the opponent is not allowed to strike the groin area. They also are prohibited from kicking, head-butting, or striking with any part of the arm other than the knuckles of
126-433: A man could not come to scratch, he would be declared loser and the fight would be brought to a halt. Fights could also end if broken up beforehand by crowd riot, police interference or chicanery, or if both men were willing to accept that the contest was a draw. While fights could have enormous numbers of rounds, the rounds in practice could be quite short with fighters pretending to go down from minor blows to take advantage of
147-610: A man while down, holding the ropes, and using resin, stones or hard objects in the hands, and biting." They were later superseded by the Marquess of Queensberry Rules , which were the origin of the modern sport of boxing . Fights under these rules were often contested with bare knuckles . The rules also allowed for a broad range of fighting including holds and throws of the opponent. Spiked shoes, within limits, were also allowed. Also included were provisions dealing with how wagers would be resolved if various events such as interference by
168-407: A pause – is broken by the referee, each fighter must take a full step back before punching again. Alternatively, the referee may direct the fighters to "punch out" of the clinch. When a boxer is knocked down, the other boxer must immediately cease fighting and move to the furthest neutral corner of the ring until the referee has either ruled a knockout or called for the fight to continue; however, once
189-417: Is fit to continue. For scoring purposes, a standing eight count is treated as a knockdown. Violations of these boxing rules may be ruled a "foul" by the referee, who may issue warnings, deduct points, or disqualify an offending boxer, causing an automatic loss, depending on the seriousness and intentionality of the foul. An intentional foul that causes injury that prevents a fight from continuing usually causes
210-477: The 30-second rest period. Famous fighters of prize ring include William "Bendigo" Thompson , Tom Cribb , Jack Broughton , James "Deaf" Burke , "Professor" Mike Donovan, Tom Allen, Samuel "Dutch Sam" Elias, John "Gentleman" Jackson, the "Benicia Boy" John Camel Heenan , Daniel Mendoza , Tom Molineaux, John "Old Smoke" Morrisey, Tom Sayers , Owen Swift , the "Trojan Giant" Paddy Ryan, Joe Goss , and James "Yankee Sullivan" Ambrose. England's last prize ring great
231-548: The Queensberry rules came into use in the United States and Canada. The following is the text of the rules. Current modern rules per the North American Association of Boxing Commissions are as follows. A boxing match is contested in three-minute rounds and ends after a pre-determined number (up to 12, formerly 15) have been fought if there is no clear winner. After every round except the last,
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#1732772029658252-438: The bout ends immediately and the opponent is credited with a win by TKO. A TKO is counted as a knockout in a fighter's record, and may also be noted as a "stoppage" or "Referee Stopped Contest" (RSC). There are three judges at ringside to score the fight and assign points to the boxers, based on connecting punches, defense, knockdowns, and other subjective measures such as accuracy of punches landed. The judges do not confer during
273-400: The boxer who committed it to be disqualified. A fighter who suffers an accidental low-blow may be given up to five minutes to recover, after which they may be ruled knocked out if they are unable to continue. Accidental fouls that cause injury ending a bout may lead to a "no contest" result, or else cause the fight to go to a decision if enough rounds (typically four or more, or at least three in
294-402: The feet as a direct result of an opponent's punch, rather than a slip or stumble, as determined by the referee. Once a knockdown occurs, the referee begins counting until either he reaches 10 or the fighter returns to their feet and can continue, whichever occurs first. If the referee completes the count, the bout ends and the standing fighter is credited with a win by knockout (KO), whether or not
315-437: The fight. Because of the open-ended nature of judging, there have been many controversial rulings. If the fight goes to the conclusion of the scheduled number of rounds without a knockout or technical knockout, then the scores assigned by the judges are used to determine a winner. The result can be classified as a unanimous decision , majority decision , split decision , or draw based on the judges' assessments. At least two of
336-427: The fighters return to their assigned corners for one minute and may receive advice and attention from their coaches. The fight is controlled by a referee who works in the ring to judge and control the fight, rule on the ability of the fighters to fight safely, count knocked-down fighters, and rule on fouls. A fighter is considered to be knocked down if they touch the canvas floor of the ring with any body part other than
357-407: The knocked-down fighter has lost consciousness at any point. A "technical knockout" (TKO) may be ruled by the referee or fight doctor if a fighter is unable to safely continue the bout, based on injuries or an inability to mount an effective defense, or if a fighter declines to continue the bout after the one-minute break between rounds has ended. If a fighter is knocked down three times in one round,
378-443: The law, darkness, or cancellations occurred. In contrast with modern boxing rules based upon the Marquess of Queensberry Rules , a round ended with a man downed by punch or throw, whereupon he was given 30 seconds to rest and eight additional seconds to "come to scratch" or return to the centre of the ring where a "scratch line" was drawn and square off with his opponent once more. Consequently, there were no round limits to fights. When
399-477: The standard set of rules under which all boxing matches were governed. This version persuaded boxers that "you must not fight simply to win; no holds barred is not the way; you must win by the rules". One early prize fighter who fought under Marquess of Queensberry rules was Jem Mace , former English heavyweight champion, who defeated Bill Davis in Virginia City, Nevada , under these rules in 1876. In 1889,
420-400: The three judges must name the same fighter as the overall winner in order for that fighter to be awarded a victory. A "standing eight count" rule may also be in effect. This gives the referee the right to step in and administer a count of eight to a fighter that he feels may be in danger, even if no knockdown has taken place. After counting the referee will observe the fighter, and decide if he
441-545: Was "gypsy" Jem Mace , and America's was John L. Sullivan —both men fought under both sets of rules, with and without gloves and are considered bridges to the modern era of boxing. John L. Sullivan is the last fighter to have won a "world" championship under the London Prize Ring Rules in 1882 against Paddy Ryan and was the last champion to defend a title under the rules in 1889 against Jake Kilrain . The rules of 1853 (which were somewhat different from
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