No Need for Holding

By Glen Anglin: The practice of judges scoring a competition in order to determine the winner of an athletic contest is the source of largest part of fan dissatisfaction and confusion. The reason for this is obvious; involving two determinants (in our case boxers) to determine the outcome of the contest becomes more complex and difficult to quantify when we add another(the referee), then even more after that(the judges). It is a simple fact that adding more sources that affect the outcome of the contest makes the result more unsatisfying, bewildering and subjective. This is why for every close decision in boxing history there are armies of fans who are absolutely certain that the decision was either accurate or robbery, depending upon whom they were rooting for. For the same reasons, knockouts leave the fans either elated or disappointed, but rarely confused and disillusioned.

Given the above, boxing should attempt to remove as much subjectivity from the refereeing and judging as possible. Starting with the known fact that ALL judging and refereeing is completely subjective, we can at least do our best to advance the sport to a point at which we have eliminated all unnecessary subjectivity. How many times have we all said it: The best referee is the one who is never noticed. Whatever rules refinements that can be done to further this can only be good for the sport.

To this end, I believe that one aspect of boxing that can be addressed is the tactic of holding. The generally accepted rules of judging professional boxing have remained unchanged for a century. However, other major sports have revised their rules often (football and basketball to name two significant examples). I see no reason why this rule cannot be amended to make holding absolutely illegal to the same extent as a deliberate foul. Punching is a no-no in other sports. Amateur wrestling allows no punching; even a single punch results in a disqualification. Also, punching in a basketball, baseball or football game is a disqualifying offense. Hockey tolerates punching, which is its Achilles heel as a spectator sport. MMA allows most any form of hand to hand combat including punching, all the more reason that boxing should distance itself from its less refined martial cousin and keep boxing what it is at its most appealing, a fistfight. So, why should boxing allow any holding, and I mean ANY holding?

Holding causes two very negative aspects in boxing. The first is that for a referee to decide during a match when the amount of holding goes from tolerable, to cautionable to punishable requires the application of an ocean of subjectivity instantaneously. The amount of holding allowed not only varies wildly from referee to referee, but from fighter to fighter, and even from fight to fight. Popular boxers like the Klitschko’s, Ali, Pep, Whitaker and Leonard get/got away with initiating dozens of clinches for which a lesser known fighter would have been reprimanded. I have seen the same referee’s sternly enforce a no holding rule in one fight, while in the next fight completely ignore more flagrant holding. Why the variations? The truth is that the holding rule is impossible to enforce consistently because the rule is so open for interpretation. One referees’s excessive holding is another’s legitimate tactic of ‘tying his man up’.

When I hear the contention that a great fighter has ‘earned’ the right to the referee’s tolerance, I want to start punching someone myself. This is the type of antilogic that makes referees think that they have more latitude than they should. How can we expect fairness and consistency from referees without an ironclad standard rule of measure? The rules are the rules. They are not up for interpretation based upon the whims of the referee, the boxers record, history, personality, or any other factor.

Another little nugget of holding stupidity that I have heard goes something like this: A certain amount of holding is acceptable if the holder is hurt and trying to recover. Oh, really? What is that amount? How hurt must the fighter be before he is awarded this extra amount of illegality? The referee must decide those windows when holding becomes less illegal, another impossibly subjective task.

My second beef with holding in boxing, is that: After all, what does holding indicate, if not the desire of the holder to call a truce at a point in the fight when he feels vulnerable? If a boxer is hurt, tired or is simply at a disadvantage in close quarters, then shouldn’t his opponent be able to take advantage of those weaknesses rather than being prevented from doing so by an illegal tactic? I don’t like holding in boxing for the same reason that I didn’t like the stall offense in basketball; it is an attempt to win the contest by avoiding the competition.

One huge benefit of reducing or eliminating the amount of holding that is acceptable in boxing is that it might allow for the addition of more people to the fan base. I have lost count of the number of times that I have talked to marginal or beginning fans who don’t understand why they came to see a fight and a hugging match broke out. They are often put off by the spectacle of a boxing match in which there was precious little boxing, and a lot of wrestling and holding. They always ask the same question: “Why doesn’t the referee make him stop?’

I realize that I am going against boxing tradition. I know that many great fighters resorted to holding, some even excessively. I also know that this does not necessarily diminish their greatness. I will receive a truckload of criticism and condescension from many boxing people. To those people, I want to pose to them a challenge. Think back over the boxing matches you have seen in your lifetime. Recall those matches in which the amount of holding became a point of contention; there have been many such matches. Just imagine how much easier the fight could be judged, and how much more enjoyable it would be to watch, if the holding in question was magically removed. If I never again see a referee separate two boxers who should be punching rather than hugging, I could die a happy boxing fan. I think that result is a goal worthy of consideration. JGA

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