How to score a fight

How is the fight scored

The modern boxing scoring system is known as the '10-Point Must System'. Here is a basic overview of how it works:

Judges score each round individually on a 10-point scale. The boxer who did better during the round will score 10 with the other fighter scoring 9.
If a boxer is knocked down or hurt enough to prompt a standing count from the referee, that fighter loses a point. So if a boxer dominates a round, controlling and landing better punches throughout and also knocks their opponent down, that result is a 10-8 round.
If both fighters score a knockdown in the same round, the deductions 'cancel each other out so it would still be a 10-9 round in favour of the better boxer.
A judge is able to award a 10-8 round without a knockdown, if the fighter scoring 10 dominated the round by a huge margin (this is usually only used if a round is total one-way traffic, or perhaps if a fighter was saved from a knockdown because the round expired).

Are 10-10 rounds allowed in boxing?

Yes! A judge has the right to score a round even. However judges are encouraged to avoid this as much as possible and to only use these scores if they truly feel it's the correct appraisal of the round. 10 - 10 rounds are to be discouraged as much as possible.

Are points deducted for breaking the rules

Yes. The referee can instruct all three judges to deduct a point from a fighter in any given round. They will do so if a fighter has done something to break the rules, such as an intentional foul (low blow, headbutt ect). A referee can also decide that a fighter has committed accidental fouls more often than is acceptable, and deduct one point for repeated offences.

What do boxing judges look for?

Here are the following areas in which boxing judges are encouraged to determine who 'won' or 'lost' a round:

Effective Aggression - Being aggressive gives the impression of dominance, but unless the boxer is landing shots and not constantly getting countered, it isn't really 'effective'. Judges look for effective aggression, where the aggressor consistently lands punches and avoids those from his opponent.
Ring Generalship - The fighter who controls the action and enforces their will and style.
Defence - How well is a boxer slipping, parrying, and blocking punches? Good defence is important.
Hard and Clean Punches - To the untrained eye, it can appear as if a boxer is landing a lot of shots, when, in fact, most are being blocked or aren’t landing flush. A judge needs to look for hard shots that land clean.

Type of results

If nobody has won via knockout after the scheduled number of rounds, the judges' round-by-round scorecards throughout the fight will be calculated to determine the winner. With each round being worth a maximum of 10 points, that means a fighter can score as high as 120 in a 12-round fight, 100 in a 10-round fight and so on.

The three judges will each have an overall winner, or perhaps have scored the fight dead even. Here are the various results that can lead to:

Unanimous decision - All three judges have the same fighter ahead on their scorecards.
Split decision - Two judges have Boxer 1 ahead, while one judge has Boxer 2 ahead. That means Boxer 1 wins, two scorecards to one.
Majority decision - 2 judges have 1 fighter ahead, while the 3rd judge scored it a draw. The winning fighter did not get a unanimous decision, but got the majority on the cards.
Draw - If one judge has Boxer 1 ahead, one judge has Boxer 2 ahead and the 3rd has scored it as a draw, the overall result is a draw (also known as a 'split draw'). If all 3 judges had it dead even, that is also a draw (a 'unanimous draw').
Majority draw - If 2 of the 3 judges have a fight even but the 3rd judge had Boxer 1 ahead, such a slender edge is not enough for Boxer 1 to be declared the winner. Instead, it is declared a 'majority draw'