The World Boxing Council continues to lead the way in its mission to modernize and strengthen the sport. During the Riyadh Season WBC Boxing Grand Prix, the first global tournament of its kind in history, groundbreaking rules have already been implemented with sensational results in all aspects.

The tournament began with 128 participants from 43 countries, divided into four weight divisions of 32 fighters each: featherweight, super lightweight, middleweight, and heavyweight. All bouts are being held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, under a single-elimination format.

First Stage (April):

A total of 64 fights were held, 16 per division, all scheduled for 6 rounds. Winners advanced directly to the next stage.

Second Stage (June):

Featured 32 fights, also scheduled for 6 rounds each.

Third Stage (August):

A total of 16 bouts were contested, once again at 6 rounds.

After three intense stages, the tournament now enters its semifinal phase, introducing a brand-new innovation: for the first time, fights will be scored by five judges.

The purpose of adding two additional judges to the traditional three is to minimize the margin of error and ensure that decisions are as fair and trustworthy as possible. In a decisive stage such as the semifinals—where spots in the Grand Prix final are at stake—the credibility of the results is crucial. With more expert perspectives and greater plurality of criteria, the risk of a controversial verdict clouding a bout is reduced to a minimum.

This adjustment reflects the WBC’s ongoing commitment to the evolution of boxing. Since its foundation, the organization has been a pioneer in implementing changes that are now standard practice, such as reducing championship fights from 15 to 12 rounds, changing the official weigh in to a day before the bout, regulations on  gloves , adding the 4th rope to the ring, mandatory diversity of medical examinations, mandatory antidoping and countless more rules and protocols.

Now, the decision to add judges in the Grand Prix semifinals follows that same tradition of innovating for the benefit of fighters and fans alike. This concept resulted from the Covid -19 Pandemic implementation of the remote scoring system which made us realize  that the more judges that score a fight the less possibility of a bad decision.

What other rules have been implemented for the Grand Prix ?

Open scoring after the second and fourth rounds.

The official judges scores are given to both corners and are publicly announced by the ring announcer and DAZN broadcast after the 2nd and 4th round;  This allows fighters to adjust their strategies in real time while giving fans a clearer picture of how the contest is unfolding.

30-second buzzer before the end of each round.

The purpose of this innovation is clear: to encourage greater activity and urgency from fighters in the final stretch of each round. By signaling that only 30 seconds remain, boxers are expected to increase intensity, throw combinations, and deliver a more exciting finish for fans while also strengthening their standing on the scorecards.

No draws.

If the scorecards end up in a draw , a tiebreak system is applied to guarantee that there is always a winner. This measure ensures that every fight has a definitive outcome with the deserving winner advancing to the next phase of the tournament . The Enhanced Scoring Program is utilized. If the fights is still scored a draw with the ESP, a panel of WBC commissioners decides who the winner is.

Instant replay.

The supervisors  have the ability to review controversial actions in real time. This includes questionable knockdowns, source of cuts, illegal punches, potential headbutts, or any action that could directly affect the outcome of the fight . Instant replay strengthens transparency, fairness, and accuracy in officiating. For fighters, it means greater protection of their rights in the ring; for fans, the reassurance that a fight will not be decided by human error or  mistake.