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Boxing is one of the oldest sports known to us. From very early historical records, to its professional development in the last century, and modern prizefights, the sport has become a global phenomenon watched by millions. Although modern boxing has a lot of similarities with its ancient cousin, the mix with television, big money, and big personalities has forever changed the sport.

==The Rise of Professional Boxing==

By 1867, the so-called Marquess of Queensberry rules now regulated rounds to be fought, how long the rounds were to last (3 minutes), rest periods between rounds (1 minute), the size of the ring (24 square feet, or slightly bigger than today's rings), the ten second count if a fighter was knocked down, and that gloves can be used to block blows by an opponent. Weight classes were also introduced, which had a heavy, middle, and light weight fighters. Gloves were now regulated as well, where the gloves were to be essentially large bloated mittens. The rule regarding how gloves could be used to block blows was a critical one in how boxing was to develop.<ref>For more on the development of these rules, see: Vann, Mickey, and Gilbert Odd. 2010. <i>Boxing in the United Kingdom: Marquess of Queensberry Rules, National Sporting Club</i>. British Boxing Board of Control. General Publishing.</ref> This now made boxing less of a "slugging" match, where opponents would often simply hit each other until the other was knocked out, to more of a strategic game that utilized the hands as well as the feet in evading and tiring the opponent. The use of gloves for defense also gave rise to what would become the boxing stance that most boxers today take, where they hold the gloves close to the face rather than keeping their hands low.

Despite these new rules, boxing was still not held in great esteem and some places even banned it. Bare-knuckle fights were still common and safety was not of high standard. Prizefighting was also often banned, as it was associated with gambling and other activities seen as vices. This only changed in the late 19th century, when in 1891 the London National Sporting Club augmented the Queensberry rules by now formalizing how scoring would take place and placed more importance on the officials and referees.<ref>For more on the London National Sporting Club's role in promoting boxing, see: Rodriguez, Robert G., and George Kimball. 2009. The Regulation of Boxing: A History and Comparative Analysis of Policies among American States. Jefferson, N.C: McFarland, pg. 30.</ref> This emphasis was to give it more safety but to also formalize fighting so that one can win a fight without having to knockout the opponent. This now opened the door for boxing to become professional, as it was more acceptable for society to have fights that were tightly regulated. Soon, newspapers took an interest in advertising who they considered "champions."<ref>For more on how newspapers and other media influenced boxing, see: Streible, Dan. 2008. Fight Pictures: A History of Boxing and Early Cinema. Berkeley: University of California Press.</ref>

In the late 19th century and earl 20th century, champions were considered to be those who simply had a consensus around them(Figure 2). The early 20th century was also the period when saloons or pubs began to be associated with a place for knowing and hearing about a boxing match and its results. Saloon keepers would announce results as they occurred and were informed by telegraph. The use of newspapers and rise of boxing promoted in early film also helped boxing to be more acceptable to the general public and spread its interest, although boxing has never lost its connection with gambling.

As for the future of boxing, with the rise of the internet we are now seeing boxers beginning to promote themselves more online, while pay per view watching is now going online. Commercialization of the sport may continue, with major companies increasingly sponsoring or linking their names to main events. This may also mean more title belts to give companies more revenue streams. However, as we have seen with boxers like Ali, personalities may yet to change the sport once again.

==References==

[[Category:Ancient History]] [[Category:Sports History]]

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