Why do men box w/o shirts. I can see wrestling. They can grab each other and I can understand how somone can grab someones clothes. But boxers don’t do this.
Any ideas?
It’s mostly the pros that go shirtless. Most amature boxers wear tank tops (and head gear). I’d chalk it up to showmanship.
I’d wager that going shirtless is another way to allow the boxers to ‘grease’ themselves. Boxers frequently use stuff like Vaseline on their skin so that their opponent’s gloves will slide off them rather than sticking to (and possibly tearing) their skin. A shirt would defeat the benefits of, er, lubing up.
They probably wouldn’t even have to lube up–sweat would do the job. They would already be sweating after warming up before entering the ring. Wearing a shirt would dry up the sweat.
Well wouldn’t you notice the grease? And if amatuers box w/shirts what’s the difference?
Boxing and wrestling were traditionally nude in the ancient world. The reason for this was to show that you weren’t carrying any weapons with you to the ring. In modern times we have this thing about nude people, so they wear trunks. So, why do amateurs wear shirts? Because nobody is really concerned that somebody is going to bring a weapon to the ring these days (well, except perhaps “Iron” Mike Tyson). They probably would let the pros do it to, except it is hard to change tradition. I can just imagine all the whining about how the shirt made a difference in the big championship fight, blah blah blah. Anyway, pro boxing is big money and hence the rules have a lot of inertia.
As an added bonus fact, the karate bow has similar origins. The modern bow is typically done incorrectly, with both people looking towards the floor. In the ancient world, the person with the higher rank did not look down and didn’t bow as lowly (if at all depending on the difference in rank). Why? So that the higher ranked person could see if the person was carrying a weapon tucked into the back of their belt.
Salute. Same thing.
Hand shake. Same thing.
The moral of the story: Human beings are very paranoid about somebody secretly carrying a weapon.
Correct me if I’m wrong, but doesn’t the shirt weigh the boxer down, especially when drenched in sweat?
I say this because boxing regulations are critical of gloves even to the fraction of an ounce. They say that even that miniscule weight makes a significant difference in later rounds.
There’s always another beer.
Boxing glove weight is critical because they are the weapon that will be used to strike the opponent. A heavier glove results in a heavier strike. After many strikes, i.e. in the later rounds, this can make a signficant difference. Some would argue that the heavier gloves result in more strain on the boxer carrying them causing him to lower his guard; however, in my experience I would gladly carry some extra weight for the added damage from heavier gloves since it is easier to carry the extra weight than it is to be struck by it.