a guide for amateur boxers looking to start in malta The boxing scene in Malta is a fairly active one and the sport is pretty much run by two major sanctioning bodies: the Malta Boxing Association (MBA) and the Malta Boxing Federation. (MBF). Both groups are set up for the safety of fighters, to celebrate and elevate the sport. Naturally they also have their differences. My experience is that of fighting White Collar and Amateur (under England Boxing) in the UK, Judge and Head Coach within the MBF and finally a Second in the MBA for one Professional Bout. I must say, I’ve worked mostly with the MBF and majority of our amateur boxers will fight via this organisation so I’ve focussed this article mostly on the MBF. We will further focus down on early stage ‘elite’ amateur boxers for this article. Both MBF & MBA have very slightly different age categorisations for this, but generally those aged 19 and above are considered elite (the name has nothing to do with skill level or experience). We’ll talk more about junior boxing at another date. malta boxing association (mba) Malta Boxing Association is part of the WBC and the EBU. It looks after both pro-boxing and a form of amateur boxing in Malta. Boxers who sign up with the MBA can join other federations/play other sports as long as they get approval from the MBA. Even though the MBA has a boxing class called “Semi-Pro”, it is not regarded as professional boxing by international standards and would be more similar stylistically to “White-Collar Boxing“. This organisation, defines an elite Boxer to be “A boxer who reaches the age 19 years within the next calendar year and over to a boxer who reaches 46 years old plus the remainder of the calendar year, or an 18 year old boxer who has elected to box within the elite category” malta boxing federation (mbf) Malta Boxing Federation looks after all IBA-approved olympic-style boxing, which includes boxers wearing red & blue and in some cases – headguards. Many of the great pro boxers you’ve seen had long, successful amateur careers before they turned pro. Once boxers are registered, they can’t fight for any other organization or combat sports, including the MBA, or they risk losing their right to fight in the MBF again. The MBF define an elite Boxer to be “any Boxer 19 years of age or older”. fight duration & equipment The MBA recently said, “We should expect 2023 to be a very busy year for the MBA in Malta, Europe, and around the world.” It has certainly delivered in its promise so far in high level entertaining events broadcasted via FightZone. Both sanctioning bodies have come together to organise fight nights with MBF sanctioned amateur fights early on in the night; closing the night with MBA sanctioned pro fights as the main event and undercards. Every two to three months, there will be some kind of Kickboxing, Muay Thai, Boxing or MMA event in Malta – so fight fans will not be disappointed. Don’t forget that some shows are held outside, usually in the evening and/or the shade to escape the intense heat. During training, it is important to acclimatise yourself to working outdoors to avoid any surprises on the day. Finally, amateur boxers may make a small amount of money from ticket sales but don’t quit your day jobs just yet. boxing shows in malta The MBA recently said, “We should expect 2023 to be a very busy year for the MBA in Malta, Europe, and around the world.” It has certainly delivered in its promise so far in high level entertaining events broadcasted via FightZone. Both sanctioning bodies have come together to organise fight nights with MBF sanctioned amateur fights early on in the night; closing the night with MBA sanctioned pro fights as the main event and undercards. Every two to three months, there will be some kind of Kickboxing, Muay Thai, Boxing or MMA event in Malta – so fight fans will not be disappointed. Don’t forget that some shows are held outside, usually in the evening and/or the shade to escape the intense heat. During training, it is important to acclimatise yourself to working outdoors to avoid any surprises on the day. Finally, amateur boxers may make a small amount of money from ticket sales but don’t quit your day jobs just yet. scoring systems The “10-9 Must System” is used to score fights by both the MBF and the MBA. Now, I could write an entire article about the scoring system, so I’ll summarise to give you an introduction. According to the MBF, judges are looking for the following criteria to award points: “Number of quality blows on target area; Domination of the Bout by technical and tactical superiority; Competitiveness” As you can see, scoring is subjective and ultimately up to the judges (of which there are usually three at this level). With this method, each round can be worth up to 10 points for the winner of said round. The other fighter gets a maximum of 9 points but If a boxer wins a round by a large margin, such as by knocking down their opponent or scoring significantly more quality blows, they might get a score of 10-8 or even 10-7 (at which point coaches/referees should be thinking about calling an end to the bout). The goal of each boxer is to get as many points as possible during the fight. Each judge will have their own score cards and the winner will be determined by whom those judges have as their individual winner. You may win by a split decision (majority of judges agree on the winner) or unanimous decision (all judges agree on a winner). Please note that a draw is not possible with three judges and three rounds. If a boxer commits a foul such as hitting below the belt, excessive holding, or hitting after the bell, the referee can penalise with points from that fighter’s score
