As I was watching a recent boxing match, I thought to myself: “Wow, there are so many belts up for grabs. It makes you wonder how many belts can a boxer win?”
The answer is that it depends on the boxer, the division, and the type of belt itself. The point is to have fun with this and see what happens when you try different combinations!
Why are there so many different boxing titles? Boxing doesn’t have only one governing body that makes decisions on belts. There are multiple groups around the world that work together but also compete for influence over each other’s decisions; this creates some confusion as far as how rankings work.
It all goes back to the promoters and sanctioning bodies. The promoters are the ones who create the titles, so they have a vested interest in creating as many titles as possible. As for why the sanctioning bodies exist well, that’s a bit more complicated.
Reasons for so many belts in boxing:
Because of the promoters:
Remember how I said that promoters have a lot of influence on the belts? Well, this is where it gets even more complicated. In boxing, the promoter is not just someone who organizes fights for his fighters. He’s also paying for them.
The boxers get paid by their promoters and so do their coaches and trainers—and so does the manager who put together their teams!
Now add in all these other people’s money being spent on belts and championship fights… You can see how things are starting to get complex here!
The bottom line is that promoters want to make money off of boxing as much as possible. They’re willing to pay huge amounts of money out in order to make sure they don’t lose any potential profit from other promoters trying to steal away your favorite boxer with better deals than yours.
Because of the different sanctioning bodies:
There are many different organizations that sanction boxing matches, and each of them has its own set of rules for how the sport is played.
Each organization also has its own set of belts: red, blue, and white for amateur boxing; green for Olympic boxing; pink for female professional fighters only; purple for male professional fighters only.
Each organization determines who can wear which belt based on performance in competition—how many fights they’ve won or lost, how long they’ve been competing professionally—and some other factors as well.
| Belts Ranking | Sanctioning Bodies |
| 1 | WBC |
| 2 | IBF |
| 3 | WBA |
| 4 | WBO |
| 5 | IBO |
| 6 | WBU |
Because the fighters themselves want it:
The reason that boxing has so many belts is because of the fighters themselves. They want to win a title, whether it be a regional belt, national or international.
The fact is that fighters are proud warriors who love to compete and be recognized as the best in their division or weight class. They also like to have something to show off and brag about, so they wear their belts everywhere they go.
Fighters compete for belts all the time:
All fighters compete for belts, but they don’t all compete for the same kinds of belts. There are different belts in different divisions and weight classes. There are also different types of medals that can be awarded after a fight, such as gold, silver, and bronze.
In boxing competitions at the Olympic Games or World Championships, medals are awarded to first place finishers after each bout; gold for first place; silver for second place; and bronze for third place. If two players tie in points during their match then both players receive a single medal made from metal alloyed with copper (e.g., bronze).
It is a very old tradition in boxing:
Boxing is an ancient sport. The first mention of the word “boxing” occurred in 1681 when a writer named Pierce Egan wrote about it in his book titled “Tom and Jerry.”
Since then, boxing has been around for hundreds of years. It has been a part of the Olympics since 1904, where it was one of only two sports (along with wrestling) included at that time. Boxing remains an important part of the modern Olympic Games today.
Over the years, different divisions have been created:
Boxing has been around for a long time. In fact, it’s one of the oldest sports in existence. But as boxing evolved, so did its rules and regulations.
Since the sport began in England in the 16th century, there have only ever been 10 weight classes: lightweight (135 lbs), welterweight (147 lbs), middleweight (160 lbs), light heavyweight (175 lbs), cruiserweight (200 lbs), heavyweight (+200lbs).
However, over the years these weight classes have changed dramatically. The current setup is based on a maximum limit for each fighter’s combined body mass.
That means that for example when weighing in to fight as a flyweight your body must not exceed 108 pounds on fight night.
Most major tournaments have belts available to the winner:
You’ve seen it before: a fighter with their hand raised in victory, standing over a fallen opponent. The referee raises the hand of the victor and presents them with a shiny new belt to show off to all their friends and family.
It’s a moment that defines what winning means in boxing, as well as sports in general.
The reason for this is simple: boxing needs its champions to be visible. Without an undisputed champion, there would be no one to fight or challenge next, which would lead to stagnation within the sport itself.
It’s an honor to win a belt:
In boxing, a belt is a symbol of achievement: it’s a physical testament to all the hard work you’ve put in over the years and all the success you’ve had on your journey through this sport.
It’s also an outward sign that people around you respect your efforts and know that you’re one of the best in your weight class, or even in all of boxing!
Belt rankings are important because they let other people know where you stand in terms of skill level.
Types of belts:
In boxing, there are three types of belts: championship belt, regular belt, and silver/gold.
Championship belts consist of red leather with gold trim and a thick gold plate on the center. Championship belts are given to boxers who win an important fight and the title. The color scheme is based on the colors of Spain’s flag (red-yellow).
Regular boxing belts are also made out of red leather but they have no gold trim or plate in the middle. This is because they aren’t given out as trophies for winning big fights like championship belts are; instead, they can be earned by simply winning fights during official bouts or tournaments.
Regular boxing belts also come in different colors depending on which type it is (i.e., blue for cruiserweight).
Do boxers keep their belts forever?
While there are no rules that say you’re required to give up your belt when you retire, most boxers will transfer their title to the next fighter who wins it. This ensures that all belts remain in circulation, and prevents anyone from collecting too many over time.
Boxers can keep their titles until they’re defeated by someone else who’s earned it. For example, if the heavyweight champion loses a fight against another contender for his title by decision or knockout, then he’ll have to give up his belt (and often does).
Other times, a boxer might simply choose not to defend his belt at all—this could happen if he’s already retired from boxing or is set on retiring soon after winning it.
It also happens when fighters get older and weaker with time; as these guys start losing fights due to age or injuries more often than younger fighters do through skill alone, they may decide not to try keeping their titles anymore so as not to embarrass themselves any further than necessary!
Boxers can win both a title and a belt:
A boxer could be the champion in one division and then move up to another division and become champion there too (with another title).
Or they could even win belts in multiple divisions at the same time – like when you see boxers who have held titles at different weights over their careers. A great example is Mike Tyson, who held four heavyweight titles simultaneously from 1990-91! This has only happened once before – by Muhammad Ali in 1978-79.
Conclusion
There you have it! We hope this article helped you understand what all those belts are about and why so many of them exist. Boxing may seem confusing at first, but with time it will become easier for you to find your way around the sport and its many titles.