Women’s Boxing: Can you? Yes you Can… Should you? Absolutely not

As we enter October, the Breast Cancer Awareness month, I have been reflecting on Women´s Boxing.

Can Women fight 3 minute rounds and 12 round fights? Of course they can, so men can fight 15 round fights, they can fight 45 round fights as it used be.

Boxers, men or women, are warriors and are willing to do whatever it takes to make a living, to become champions, to be heroes.
It is our duty to always protect boxers even from themselves.

The WBC was the first organization to implement the Women Boxing Championship; We applaud the Women’s International Boxing Federation founded in March 1989 by boxing pioneer Barbara Buttrick, who started women’s championships, sanctioning only women fights.

The WBC has supported women boxing with so many different actions but most importantly in safety matters.

This is not about equality, sexism or discrimination, it is purely about safety. Men and Women are not the same, as simple as that; Take their skeletons and compare them, we are different; There are huge differences in hormonal structure and functions, bone structure and a major difference in the neck area which increases danger for women with higher probabilities for concussion.

Most if not all sports have different rules for men and women :

Tennis – Men play 5 sets, women 3.
Basketball – 3 point mark is shorter, ball smaller.
Cycling – Men 280 Km , women 140.
Hockey and Lacrosse – No checking
NCAA Cross Country – 8 km vs 6 and 12 vs 8
Golf – Tee off from shorter distance
Etc….

The Universal rules for women boxing is maximum of 10 round fights and 2 minute rounds . The WBC will not accept to change and there is a justification, the same which made the WBC reduce from 15 to 12 rounds world championship fights and now all regional titles from 12 to 10 and even 8 rounds.

Dehydration + fatigue + blow to the head = Considerable increase of risk and danger for fighters health, brain trauma and even death.

For reasons beyond anyone´s belief, some boxing commissions are willing and have accepted to break the Unified rules of boxing, which under the Muhammad Ali act is a breach to federal law.

All championship fights in the USA must be sanctioned under the Unified rules; The ABC unified Rules are clear
No more than 10 rounds and 2 minute rounds.

It is also extremely dissapointing that the 3 other boxing organizations agree to sanction 12 rounds and 3 minutes round for women in boxing. That is ultimately their decision.

The WBC will not join the bandwagon of opportunists who do not place boxers safety before popularity or experimental projects. We will stand strong by the medical research and expert papers by UCLA, Pink Concussion and a multitude of ring physicians like Dr Wallace, Dr Nithin Sethi, Dr Sturla, Dr Monreal and countless more.

In closing, we applaud the NFL for constantly changing its rules for the protection of the athletes even against the out cry from fans, NFL protects the Quarterbacks and defenseless receivers….

It is the duty of the sports authorities to protect our athletes at all times. It is time for athletes to protect themselves as well

Long live Boxing, Long Live the WBC

Mauricio Sulaimán