Boxer safety, and the relationship between the referee and the ringside physician

Abstract

Both the referee and the ringside physician are
entrusted with the safety of the boxer in the ring. The
Uniform Boxing Rules (approved August 25, 2001,
Amended August 2, 2002, Amended July 3, 2008)
recognise the referee as the sole arbiter of a bout and
the only individual authorised to stop a contest. Unified rules of
mixed martial arts (MMA) and some boxing commissions recognise
both the referee and the ringside physician as arbiters of a fight, and
the only individuals authorised to enter the fight area at any time
during competition and stop a fight when the combatant’s safety
is compromised. Irrespective of who stops the fight, the stoppage
should be timely and fair to the combatants and their corners; a
premature stoppage is unfair to the boxers, their corners, the promoter
and the public, while a fight stopped too late risks serious injury and
even death of the boxer.[1]
Stoppage from inside the