Boxing: Rules

This page is mainly concerned with the various weight divisions and their history.

Scottish nobleman who publicly endorsed the proposed rules of boxing, drafted in 1865 (by the Welsh sportsman John Graham Chambers) and published in 1867 – including the mandating of the use of gloves; the rules were subsequently named after him

The four ways in which a fight can be decided are:

US National Boxing Association (NBA) changed its name to World Boxing Association (WBA)		1962
World Boxing Council (WBC) founded in Mexico City		1963
International Boxing Federation (IBF) founded in USA		1983
World Boxing Organisation (WBO) founded		1988

Weight limits established 1910
Heavyweight	over 175lb
Light–heavyweight	175lb
Middleweight	154lb
Welterweight	142lb
Lightweight	133lb
Featherweight	122lb
Straw	116lb
Flyweight	112lb
Paperweight	105lb

More than 100 years on, things are no longer so simple. In the modern game, the nearest thing to a definitive standard is the one used in the Olympics and the amateur game, while the four governing bodies of the professional game (WBC, WBA, IBF and WBO) each have their own definitions.

The following table gives the modern Olympic / Amateur divisions and their weight ranges. If you're ever asked about boxing weight divisions, I reckon these are the ones you're supposed to give.

Modern Olympic / Amateur divisions
	Super Heavyweight	Over 91 kg
	Heavyweight	81-91 kg
	Light–heavyweight	75-81 kg
	Middleweight	71-75 kg
	Light Middleweight	67-71 kg
	Welterweight	63.5-67 kg
	Light Welterweight	60-63.5 kg
	Lightweight	57-60 kg
	Featherweight	54-57 kg
	Bantam	51-54 kg
	Flyweight	48-51 kg
	Light Flyweight	Under 48 kg

I'd suggest that even having simplified things to this extent, a certain amount of common sense is still required. For example, I wouldn't expect to be asked which division comes between heavyweight and middleweight; and if asked what was between middleweight and lightweight, I'd say welterweight (ignoring light middleweight and light welterweight, not to mention super welterweight and junior middleweight which you can see in the table below).

For completeness, and to show how complicated it actually is, here's the full list:

Maximum weights		WBC	WBA	IBF	WBO	Olympic/Amateur
lbs	Kg					Max Kg
							Super heavy
		Heavy				91	Heavy
200	90.72	Cruiser			Junior Heavy
175	79.4	Light Heavy				81	Light Heavy
168	76.2	Super Middle
160	72.6	Middle				75	Middle
154	69.9	Super Welter	Junior Middle			71	Light Middle
147	66.7	Welter				67	Welter
						63.5	Light Welter
140	63.5	Light				60	Light
130	59	Super Feather	Junior Light
126	57.2	Feather				57	Feather
122	55.3	Super Bantam	Junior Feather
118	53.5	Bantam				54	Bantam
115	52.2	Super Fly	Junior Bantam
112	50.8	Fly				51	Fly
108	49	Light Fly	Junior Fly			48	Light Fly
105	47.6	Straw	Mini–Fly

Term used in boxing and other combat sports, to describe a non–standard weight limit – used when competitors agree to weigh in at a certain amount, rather than within an official weight class		Catchweight
Similar term, used when there is no weight limit, allowing fighters of widely different sizes to compete against each other		Openweight

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Boxing: Rules