 Boxing is considered one of the most efficient, powerful and flexible forms of fighting that a person can learn today. Over the years it has produced formidable fighters and has become one of America's favorite sporting pastimes. But the key word there is sports. Is boxing actually a martial art or is it just entertainment? Now this is just an analytical exploration of boxing and it's placed amongst combat and combat sports. I, of course, as always welcome all of you out there to give your feedback and put down in the comments below, especially if you have a boxing experience. And if you liked today's video, please be sure to hit subscribe button below and a true boxing fashion. Bang that bell so you get future notifications for all new episodes. Now we're not going to be doing a deep dive into the history of boxing as it has been around for a long, long time. It's roots go back thousands of years across many generations. But it does make sense as seeing that biologically our hands are our primary biological weapon. So it really does make sense that over the course of time and in early human history, we would have developed efficient ways to learn to punch and strike using our hands in boxing and other combat arts. So just because boxing is a fighting style, does it belong under the classification of a martial art? It's a pretty good question and there seem to be pretty solid arguments on both sides of this debate. Well, first let's quickly define what martial arts means. Martial, the word martial comes from the word Mars or the god of war. So literally speaking, martial arts means art of war. Now traditionally and historically, those who trained in the martial arts were usually soldiers and these were used in war timing on the battlefield against enemy combatants. But as time went on, arts evolved and branched out and while some of those branches stayed in combat, many of them developed into self defense systems because at this point in time as history went on, more focus on firearms technology started to take over the battlefield so hand-to-hand combat took it back seat to more preferable technological advances in warfare. And then we also have the difference between traditional martial arts and today's contemporary fighting styles. You see a full rounded traditional martial art typically includes a lot of things to it besides just fighting, especially in times where it was trained as a way of life, whether it be serve for self defense or for war, it usually included a lot of philosophy, spirituality, a way to live, a lot of study, as well as the combat systems. And some feel that martial arts should be only strictly for fighting. So there's a little bit of a debate there about where martial arts should volunteer in their application. And we went into this topic in a lot more depth in the previous episode, mixed martial arts versus traditional martial arts. So we have a link below in the description if you want to check that out. But you have to kind of keep that in mind that there's still, there's many mindsets that we're working with here. So it's not just whether boxing is a martial art or not. You have to go along with the definition of what a martial art is and also the difference between traditional martial arts and contemporary martial arts that we see today. So where does boxing fit in all of this mix? So let's look at a couple of reasons why people say boxing is not a martial art. Well, the first plain definition is it's not martial. Boxing wasn't meant for the military. It wasn't meant for war. It is not designed to kill or maim an opponent. It is primarily used today as a sporting event. And within the sporting event structure is an extremely strict list of set rules. There is no elbowing. There is no takedowns, headbutts, kicks, knee strikes, biting. Well, biting is not technically allowed even though over the years, years have become a bit of a delicacy. There are set rules in place all governed by a referee. And even in terms of offense, the boxers are usually limited to just a few set strikes. The four main ones being the jab, the cross, the hook, and the uppercut. And even the defense has some limits. It's pretty much restricted to bobbing, weaving, dodging, slipping punches, guarding up, clenching, and some fancy footwork. But since boxers have a limited tool set to work with, those that succeed have found a way to take those few tools and use them incredibly effectively. Definitely an example of quality over quantity. And then you have to take into account boxing gloves. You know, a lot of people assume that by putting boxing gloves on, you're limiting the damage that you're delivering to your opponent. When in reality, the gloves play a bigger role into the sport itself. First of all, the gloves themselves have physical mass and weight. It might not seem like much, but it's just that much more added to the momentum of a punch. And plus wearing boxing gloves allows the boxer to exert full power rotation and deliver a full body strike to an opponent with limiting damage to their hands because there's a lot of difference between striking with a padded glove and striking with a bare knuckle or bare hand. There's a big difference between the two. Not only that though is gloves also help obscure division. So if a boxer throws a jab out or puts a hand out there, you know, it can kind of obscure division a little bit and sets you up for a cross or another punch. So boxing gloves play a big role into the sport itself. And for anyone who thinks that it really limits the impact done to the opponent, ask anybody who's ever fought Mike Tyson to see if they agree with you. Even with gloves on, a boxer can exert some serious damage. Also with boxing comes the constant of pacing. Matches are paced out. Boxers take their time. They try to read the other opponent. They move around. They look for patterns. There's a certain rhythm to find because very rarely is a boxing match over and you know, one, two, three is done. You know, what kind of fun is that? Whereas in a real fight, it's about ending it quickly and definitively to get yourself home safely. Boxing is a little bit different. It's more of a game. There's a strategy. There's a pacing. There's a rhythm. And in many cases this draws out the fight, you know, a long period of time. How many street fights do you see last 15 minutes? Not very often. And also in boxing, you're in a controlled environment, usually indoors, inside of a ring, level ground, with a referee, one-on-one fight. In a real life self-defense situation, the ring is 360 degrees around you and everybody in it. So looking at things from this perspective, one can start to understand why boxing might be just a sport and not a martial art. In addition, there's no kata, there's no belt ranks, and there's no cultural infusion. There's 100% about that fight that takes place within that ring. So it seems like pretty fair reasoning and assumption why some people would feel that boxing is not a martial art. However, let's look at some reasons why some feel that it should be classified as a martial art. So like we mentioned, it is 100% about fighting. Sport or not, it is a regimented fighting system. You need expert teaching, training, timing, learning how to properly execute strikes. You've got to find your pace and rhythm. The boxers who put the time and effort into it, they develop a high skill stat that makes them a very efficient fighter. But like other martial arts, boxing is more than just learning how to throw a wild punch. It's all about understanding the proper science and body mechanics behind throwing an efficient strike. And because of that, boxing is often called the sweet science, mainly because it's not just a brawl. It's not two guys just throwing punches at each other. There is a scientific method to it. Opponents have to stop. They have to read. They have to understand. You know, rarely do boxers just get into a ring without knowing anything about each other. They study each other ahead of time before the match. They are matched together, and their skill sets are finely tuned to try to take advantage of the weaknesses of the other. The term first appeared in the 1800s when sports writer Pierce Egan used it to describe the method that fighters used to size each other up and analyze and look for that strategic moment to go in and strike. And the term was also used again later in the book The Sweet Science by AJ Liebling published in 1956. So basically, the whole concept is you've got the scientific method and this process of, you know, sizing up your opponent, and when you get that combination, when you break the difference, you get something in there, you land that sweet combination, you land that sweet move. So sometimes you'll hear boxing referred to as the sweet science. Now it may not be geared for war, but boxing is still a combat sport. It's not designed to maim or kill an opponent, but it is intended to inflict as much damage as possible to the opponent to knock them out and prevent them from harming you. To be fair, arts like Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Muay Thai, and Judo are primarily used in sporting events in the rings as well. They're not necessarily designed to kill you, but yet most people wouldn't argue applying the label of martial arts to them. So why should boxing be any different? So when it comes to martial arts and self-defense systems, the key word is right there in the title. Self-defense. Yes, boxing is a sport. Yes, they have to contend with gloves and rules and limitations. So do you think a boxer really has the ability to defend themselves in real life? You betcha. Judo boxers know how to move and defend quickly. They know how to read their opponent, find the patterns, look for openings, and in the fight against an average person, a boxer who lands a full-powered body blow onto that person, gloves or not, they're going to inflict some serious damage. And many street fights resort to fist fights. So do you really want to argue that Muhammad Ali, Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield, and Manny Pacwell couldn't hold their own in a street fight? Now, boxing may not have cuts or a lot of aspects of traditional martial arts, but it is still a regimented fighting system. It still has manuals, it still has a curriculum, and it still has layered training. And you see boxing in the martial arts. In MMA and UFC events, you'd be hard-pressed to find a fighter that doesn't have boxing to some degree as part of their mix. Even fighters who specialize in BJJ or Judo or they have one specific skill set, you'll see them adding boxing many, many times to round themselves out to give themselves that solid stand-up striking system to go with their grappling. So honestly, I think the arguments both for and against the designation of boxing as a martial art are pretty substantial, and it really might come down to more perspective and opinion and even the application of the term. But what's not debatable is the benefits that boxing brings. It teaches proper punches, balance and footwork. It can supplement any other martial art training, which is why I think it's so common to see it in the MMA. A person can learn to strike more efficiently in a shorter amount of time and it complements a lot of other arts such as karate and kickboxing and it fills in the gaps left open by BJJ and Judo. And just about anyone can learn some form of boxing with the right teaching and time put into it. It's a hell of a workout on stress relief. Sometimes there is nothing more satisfying than putting the full fury of frustration into a driving punch that rocks a heavy bag. It also greatly improves your motor skills. It will toughen you up both physically and mentally. If you're training in a live gym, you're not just learning how to punch hard, but also how to punch and keep on punching and keep on going. It builds up endurance. One of my favorite movie quotes actually comes from Rocky Balboa and when she's talking to a son when his son is kind of complaining about living in his father's shadow and how life hits, Rocky goes on to say, it isn't about how hard you hit. It's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. It's about how much you can take and keep moving forward. So is boxing the martial art? Personally, I feel that it's fair to say yes to some degree. I think boxing can be considered a contemporary or modern martial art style, at least as much as, you know, Muay Thai and BJJ and Juno can be considered. It may not be meant for the battlefield or armed conflict, but it is absolutely a regimented fighting system, developing efficient power and defense, applied in a scientific and strategic way to inflict heavy damage and knock out your opponent. It is also highly effective in street fighting and self-defense. And with its easy ability to slip into the mix of other martial arts, sport or not, I feel at the very least it deserves its place of respect among them. So now I ask all of you guys, what do you think? Do you consider boxing the martial art? Anyone out there with boxing experience or a perspective, I would love to hear your opinion. And anyone at all, please put down in the comments below. Please keep it civil. I would like to know what you think. Were boxing fits in history in terms of a martial art or is it just a combat sport? Thanks for watching. And as always, if you guys like our content, please consider supporting us either on Patreon or our YouTube memberships. You can find that information below. And we appreciate all you do in supporting this channel. Thank you so much and we'll see you all next week.