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Referees and judges by Gary Turner
You won’t win a single fight if you can’t satisfy the referee and judges. These are the officials, the only people you must satisfy in order to win. They are there to control the fight, score the fight, and impose the rules on the fighters. They are there to be influenced and controlled. They are tools you need to help you win. In the first instance, you must know the rules you are fighting under. I have fallen foul many times by doing minor infractions of rules, usually involving footsweeps or throws, all because I believed I could do them during the course of the fight. Perhaps I should have checked the rules before fighting? Rules change, referees interpret them differently, and you may be fighting under a different format than what you are used to. Obtain a rule book, and speak to the referee and judges for your fight. Check that you are all singing from the same hymn sheet – you don’t want to be penalised with an infraction, and don’t want to be hit with something you didn’t think was allowed. The referee is usually non-scoring and
is there to protect you. He is in the ring with you with your safety as his
prime consideration. He is there to enforce and ensure rules are adhered to,
discipline fighters for infractions, and ensure good sportsmanship and fair play.
He should not be biased in any way. The referee will administer the fight,
telling the fighters when to start, stop, and break. The referee can make decisions that directly affect the result. He will identify and monitor injuries, call the doctor in for a closer inspection if necessary, and may act on the doctor’s recommendations. He has the power to stop the fight at any time to protect a fighter from excessive damage, administer counts as he sees fit, and manage any alterations to equipment. In an ideal world, every referee will undertake the task in an equal manner. Not always so. Each referee will have different backgrounds, training, experience and preferences. This can influence the way that they interpret and administer the rules. Therefore you should try and watch the referees in fights prior to yours, to see how he works. An example of this is that a good referee will allow in fighting in a clinch, a poorer one will just call break and not recognise the skills being used. Judges are employed to score the fight. They record each round, usually on the ten point system. They should all score the same, with the same preferences and understanding of the rules. Again they will have different backgrounds, experience and preferences. Some, less experienced judges are influenced by the crowd and corner teams. They will have different perspectives as to preferred techniques for scoring. They may place more emphasis, or just look out for a combination of work rate, aggression, clean strikes, kicks, punches, clusters of strikes – whatever their particular preference. Now that you know this it is a good idea to talk to the judges prior to the fight to understand what it is they are looking for. This can then be incorporated into your fight plan. A handy tip though if you want to ensure a win – if in doubt, knock him out! Whatever their preference, judges can
and will only score what they see. Therefore, your first task in pleasing the
judges is to ensure that they are looking at you, and following your techniques
rather than your opponent’s. This way they will take more notice of you and
are more likely to score in your favour. Its always best to be active and
pro-active, stepping forward, controlling the fight, feinting to give the
impression of high work rate, and ensuring you throw enough to keep the judges
focused. Remember judges can only score what they
see. Cover his techniques, and let them see yours. A common complaint in points
competitions is the famous ‘I was robbed – my point hit first’ scenario.
This may be true. However, if the judges can’t see the technique, they will
not score it. A further example is my K1 fight against Mark Russell that ended
in a split point’s decision. One judge, and the crowd on that side of the
arena saw that I won. The other two judges and crowd on the opposing sides gave
it to Mark by one round. It was the same fight. It was scored fairly, but the
judges can only score what they see, and therefore I lost. If the two judges had
been on the other side I may have been given the decision. Therefore make your
techniques really clear, and if necessary rotate your opponent during the fight
so that the judges see your best side! Your behaviour to the officials must be exemplary. Be polite, show respect, and honour their decision without question – it is your corner’s place to complain, not yours. If your corner is doing their job properly they will note any discrepancies in the refereeing and raise them on your behalf. Never be discourteous to an official – you want them to look on you favourably both now and in the future. Besides, if you are fighting you should concentrate on that task instead. The official are human. They have personalities, they tire, and they are all individual. Learn who they are, what they think, and how they operate. Learn how you can get them working with you rather than against you and make it easier to win. As you can see from the photographs, the referee may always be in the background, but he is key to your success. |
