By Boxing Bob Newman

Octavio Raúl Rodrígues Salazar, Gustavo Padilla, Raúl Cáiz, Jr., Luis Pabón and José Roberto Torres all participated in the WBA ring officials seminar as the last order of the day for the 99th WBA convention online.

Preparation of ring officials as always, is extremely important. Everything from pre-fight diet, having extra pens (for judges), mental and physical conditioning are all paramount to carrying out the responsibilities of judges and referees.

Several hypothetical, situational exercises were held combining both judging and referee issues. Slips versus knockdowns, cuts caused by unintentional head clashes, etc. were discussed.

Raul Cáiz, Jr. headed up the referee portion of the seminar.

Cáiz discussed the concept of Speed of Play or Game Speed. The intensity at which the competition if contested, especially considering the difference between amateur and professional sports.
Not only is the sport “played” faster, but the athlete needs to think faster.

In boxing, the same holds true and ring officials need to operate at the “speed of the game” that the boxer is competing. Officials need to adapt and be on their toes, to ensure the fairest, best outcome for the competitors. This goes for tolling the count during a knockdown and evaluating the condition of the fighter after a knockdown. Timing is everything and a split second can deprive a fighter of achieving their dream of becoming world champion.

Several video examples were shown in which knockdowns occurred and the count was consistently assessed in an accurate, timely fashion. Pabón also noted that despite the referees in each sample video were from different countries, their work was consistent, proving they did their work and training very seriously.