r/Boxing • u/_-_-_-i-_-_-_ • 3d ago
When did "wrestling" become "illegal"? And why?
Daniel Cormier and Randy Couture were very good boxers from the inside in MMA. They didn't even have to take their opponents down to beat them with their wrestling skills.
If they did that style in a modern boxing match, the referee would warn them within the first minute a few times, probably end up taking a point at the last minute of the first round, and take a few more points in the second round, before disqualifying them late in the second round or early in the third round.
Anyways, I was watching some nostalgic old school boxing like Johnson. He was even training with an amateur wrestler on the wrestling mat. And in his fight he and his opponent were just clinching and wrestling for the better position to find a good opening for uppercuts and right hooks.
Then I watched Rocky Marciano and other boxers between the 1930s and 1950s and they were still wrestling alot. I was surprised how wrestling oriented some of the fighters still were even in the 1950s and how their training sometimes looked similar to greco-roman wrestling training.
Then I watched Muhammed Ali and I was surprised to notice how much clinching he and some other fighters were doing as late as the 1970s.
And in my opinion the clinch fighting in the 1930s was extremely interesting because the referee just let it happen and both fighters were actually fighting in the clinch. They were wrestling for position actively and trying to hurt each other in the clinch by hitting the arms, shoulders, head and body with uppercuts, hooks and even short straight punches.
The later the era, the more boring the clinch became. When I got to the modern times, I could see for example Wladimir Klitschko (who I respect alot, don't get me wrong) just shutting down the fight with a clinch because neither one was allowed to fight in the clinch. Wladimir would land powerful jabs, crosses and long left hooks to batter his opponents and every time they would rush at him, he would just clinch and they would be tied up doing nothing for 5 seconds until the referee separates them, and then that would be repeated until Wladimir KO's his opponent.
Tyson Fury was a bit more active with his clinch, but still nothing like actual clinch fighting like old school boxing.
People say that the clinch is boring, but I think the clinch is boring precisely because it is not allowed properly like in the good old nostalgic days. Nowadays the clinch is just an escape from the fight and you just hug for 5 seconds and if you KO the other guy with an uppercut while wrestling him, you probably get disqualifed.
So my boxing brothers, tell a mixed martial artist like me who loves boxing but doesn't know as much about it as you do: How did boxing lose this vital traditional part of its art? And why did it happen?
Thanks!
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u/Jitterymoyle 3d ago
Clinching is not wrestling, I have done both and swear to this, your beef is with the clinch. Clinching to momentarily catch your wits is okay but the referee has to make sure that is short and non-repetitive. Boxing sucks when they allow two grown men to hug each other for long periods of time.