When someone is standing in your personal space, your first instinct might be to push them away. And as a boxer, you may want to do it when your opponent is pressuring you. But is that legal in the sport of boxing?
Technically, pushing your opponent is not allowed in boxing. According to the Association of Boxing Commissions and Combative Sports, “Pushing an opponent about the ring or into the ropes” is considered a foul. With that in mind, you might be wondering why pushing seems fairly common in professional boxing.
Well, there’s some gray area where this topic is concerned. Let’s take a closer look.
Consequences of pushing your opponent
Before the Queensberry rules were adopted, wrestling and pushing were actually permitted in boxing. These days, pushing your opponent is viewed as a foul. This act usually results in a warning for the first offense and then a point deduction for repeat offenses. A blatant push can lead directly to a point deduction. Referees are especially strict about this in the world of amateur boxing. If you push your opponent, you will be punished for it.
Professional boxing
Things are a bit different in professional boxing. Pushing is still technically prohibited, but most referees will allow slight pushing and nudging as a part of inside fighting. Only obvious shoves—when someone’s arms are fully extended—result in warnings or point deductions.
In 2011, Amir Khan faced Lamont Peterson in a controversial 2011 junior welterweight title fight. Though Khan landed the better shots throughout the fight, he was deducted two points for pushing (once in the seventh round and once in the 12th). That proved to be the difference, as Peterson won a highly debated split decision. Following the fight, ESPN reporter Dan Rafael wrote that a point deduction for pushing is “highly unusual” in professional boxing.
Another recent example of pushing being punished in pro boxing is the 2019 middleweight bout between Chris Eubank Jr. and James DeGale. Eubank seemed irritated despite controlling most of the fight because his opponent kept holding on to him. Eubank would push off and attempt to keep fighting only for DeGale to initiate a clinch once more. In the 11th round, Eubank went off the rails when DeGale lunged in, as he ducked the punch and basically just slammed his opponent onto the canvas. The referee deducted one point from him.
However, Eubank had knocked DeGale down twice and was so far ahead on points that he claimed a unanimous decision anyway.
Those are examples of clear pushes that led to point deductions. Generally speaking, though, referees tend to sit on the more lenient side when it comes to pushing in professional boxing.
How to push “legally” in boxing
Unless you’re simply shoving your opponent with your arms extended, you can often get away with pushing in professional boxing. In fact, one of our YouTube videos outlines three approaches to pushing your opponent in order to gain a positional advantage.
The first and perhaps most common method is called “bumping in.” This is a great way to close the distance in a safe manner. Here is how to do it:
- First, you need to slip outside your opponent’s lead hand. This also puts you far away from their rear hand, so they shouldn’t be able to land anything meaningful on you.
- Then you want to slide into them while stepping forward, ending up in a shoulder-to-shoulder position. This is how you gain leverage.
- Make sure to keep your hips close to theirs. Otherwise, you may find yourself leaning in with your upper body and thus exposing your chin to a short hook or uppercut.
- At this point, you can choose how to proceed. When you want to generate space for a punch to land, use your shoulder to push them away. When you want to take space away and smother their punches, bump in once more.
Interestingly, the best counter to this method is also a form of pushing. If your opponent is attempting to close the distance, you can use your glove or forearm as a wedge of sorts. Place it on their neck or shoulder and push with it to create separation when you see fit. This will let you control the distance and engage on your terms.
Another pushing technique is dubbed the “chicken wing.” Its name comes from its appearance, as this method involves tucking in your lead forearm and flaring out your elbow when you and your opponent are in close quarters. Pushing with this chicken wing creates a surprising amount of force, as you can disrupt your opponent’s balance, turn them and open up new targets for your punches.
Finally, there’s the “doorknob.” This is a type of elbow control used to establish superior positioning. Here is how to use it:
- Grab your opponent’s lead elbow.
- Push it across their body.
- Step to their lead side in order to gain a dominant angle (you can pivot or shuffle to that side instead of merely stepping).
Bear in mind that this is not limited to elbow control. You can also use their glove or hip as a doorknob if those are available. This method is useful because you gain leverage from the handle, while your opponent will struggle to turn or step with you since you are holding their arm in place. Naturally, this also hinders their offense, as their feet are not set and one of their hands is taken out of the picture.
So while pushing as we commonly perceive it—arms fully extended—is illegal in boxing, there are ways to manipulate your opponent’s frame without facing any consequences.
Fighters who found success via pushing in boxing
George Foreman
One of the most famous examples of effective pushing in high-level boxing unfolded at “The Sunshine Showdown” between George Foreman and Joe Frazier. This 1973 classic heavyweight encounter saw the underdog Foreman dismantle Frazier with his combination of pushing and vicious looping punches.
Though Frazier was viewed as the superior technician, Foreman fought in a style the favorite had never seen before. It was actually tailor-made to counter Frazier’s. The latter loved to stay low, bobbing and weaving before throwing his punches. He moved in straight lines and relied on pressure and accuracy to break his opponents. Foreman, meanwhile, was craftier than he was given credit for. Sure, he hit really, really hard, but he also understood how to put himself in advantageous situations through footwork and control of his opponent’s frame.
When Frazier tried to dart inside, Foreman reacted by pushing his opponent’s arms or shoulders and turning or backstepping out of range. It was similar to the elbow control method we discussed earlier. When Frazier got close and ducked to set up a power punch, Foreman pushed down on Frazier’s frame, preventing him from ever getting back to his desired level.
In essence, he nipped all of Frazier’s attacks in the bud. Frazier could never truly get close or even touch Foreman. Moreover, Frazier’s tendency to duck put his head directly in the line of fire for Foreman’s uppercuts.
Ultimately, Foreman knocked Frazier down six times and was declared winner by technical knockout in the second round.
Styles obviously make fights, and Foreman’s was the perfect counter to Frazier’s. Smokin’ Joe worked in a very direct fashion, which made Foreman’s pushing techniques particularly effective. He could push Frazier back to clear some space, to the side in order to gain a better angle or down to control his opponent and move him into an incoming punch. He was constantly upsetting Frazier’s balance, while he was always in a favorable position. It also helped that Foreman ranks among the hardest hitters the sport has ever seen.
Now, it’s worth mentioning that some of Foreman’s tricks from this fight would no longer be allowed today. You can get away with elbow control and even pushing down onto an opponent’s shoulders depending on the referee, but some of his defensive pushes to gain space were outright shoves with his arms stretched out. Those would surely result in warnings or even point deductions.
Floyd Mayweather Jr
A modern fighter who made tremendous use of pushing is Floyd Mayweather Jr. He’s probably best known inside the ring for his shoulder roll and impenetrable defense, but his forearm control in tight was superb.
Mayweather was especially fond of employing this technique after throwing his own punches. Instead of retracting his hand (the textbook approach), he would form a wedge with his forearm and pin it against his opponent’s neck or shoulder in order to keep some distance and manipulate their frame. This way, he could control their hands and obstruct their vision. He was smothering their offense and only engaging when he felt like it.
This was a masterful approach to closing distance and then immediately transitioning into controlling it. There was no getting close to Mayweather unless he wanted that. It’s no surprise that he was so difficult to hit.
Not many fighters are as skilled as Mayweather was, but you do still see pushing techniques in high-level contests from time to time.
Lopez vs Loma
For instance, Teofimo Lopez displayed his version of bumping in during his 2020 breakout fight against Vasyl Lomachenko. After starting slowly, Loma recognized that he was behind on points and needed to pressure Lopez to win the fight. In the 12th round, Lomachenko cornered his opponent and threw a combination that pushed Lopez to the ropes. Lopez responded by ducking and sliding into Lomachenko.
However, instead of using this tool to initiate some in-fighting, he bumped his opponent backward in order to create the space required to connect with his right hand.
Conclusion
Technically, pushing is not allowed in boxing and can result in warnings or point deductions. That has not stopped professional boxers from using subtle pushing techniques, though.
Using your forearm as a wedge can help you control the distance and fight on your terms. Changing levels and bumping in with your shoulder puts you in a great in-fighting position. The key is simply not to push your opponent with your arms fully extended. That will be penalized—whether it’s amateur or professional boxing.