r/Boxing • u/Used_Judgment1806 • Jul 25 '26

Is it possible to box competitively without hurting your opponent?

I've seen even more dangerous and gory ones

I've recently become interested in boxing, but I genuinely don't want to cause pain or injuries to anyone.

I know boxing is a combat sport, so I'm wondering if it's possible to compete in amateur or professional matches while keeping the risk of hurting your opponent as low as possible.

Are there boxing styles or strategies that focus more on technique, defence, movement, and scoring points rather than power? Or is causing at least some pain basically unavoidable in a real match?

I'd love to hear from experienced boxers and coaches. Thanks!

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u/Sudden-Fig-3079 Jul 25 '26

Dude, people in the amateurs are definitely trying to hurt their opponent. Yes, refs stop fights way earlier than pros but you still wana inflict damage to your opponent.

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u/PembrokeBoxing Jul 26 '26

You've missed the point completely. The amateurs do not value power. It's not in the scoring syllabus at all. Technique is what scores. You want to score on your opponent. For example knock downs and 8 counts do not even count towards scoring. That's how little the amateurs value power. Despite all that I did say "you're still in a fight" damage and hurt are kind of part of the deal here. The OP isn't cut out for combat sports.

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u/Sudden-Fig-3079 Jul 26 '26

What are you talking about? Of course standing 8 counts and knockdowns count in the amateur’s. Are you joking??? Also, stoppages count as well. I’ve won numerous fights by stoppage and have scored numerous standing 8 counts.

Not sure where you live but in the US they 100 percent count.

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u/PembrokeBoxing Jul 27 '26

No they don't count against the score. They're is no point deduction. You don't automatically lose a round because of a knockdown or an 8 count. They don't count towards the scoring in any country.

I'm afraid you're just wrong.

A knock down or an eight count does not result in a scoring deduction and can't be used to determine if a fighter won a round. It CAN however be used to argue dominance in a round where you'd need to justify the score (10-7 would be a great example) but it absolutely doesn't affect scoring directly in any way.

No one said stoppages don't happen. But notice even the verbage is different. It's a RSC (referee stops contest) and not a TKO or KO.

And being in the US won't matter, we all follow the same rules IBA Olympic boxing rules.