"Sincethe inception of the Marquess of Queensberry rules boxing has understood theneed to be safer. While there have been some rule changes through the years,many have been like applying an 'enswell' to reduce swelling. In his latestbook, When in Doubt Stop the Bout, Mike Silver asks the hard questionsand offers serious and innovative solutions that will make the sport saferwithout diluting its primal appeal. Anyone who cares about boxing and thefighters who put themselves at risk should read this book."-Teddy Atlas,Hall of Fame trainer and boxing analyst
In Whenin Doubt, Stop the Boutinfrastructure and those responsible forit.
Fromcompromised referees to poorly trained ringside physicians to an insidiouscartel of "sanctioning organizations" approving dangerous mismatches, Silverlays bare the corruption, the negligence, and the incompetence that has made adangerous sport even more dangerous.
But asidefrom unmasking the chaotic mess that afflicts boxing, this book for the firsttime proposes groundbreaking practical solutions that will mitigate the dangerand save lives. Penetrating and persuasive, When in Doubt, Stop the Boutwill change forever how you see the sport of boxing.
Table of Contents:
Chapter 1: A Brief History
Chapter 2: The Case for Shorter Fights: Part 1
Chapter 3: The Case for Shorter Fights Part II:
Learning From the Past
Chapter 4: The Referee’s Dilemma
Chapter 5: Educating the Referee
Chapter 6: Modifying the Rules
Chapter 7– A Referee Speaks Out –Anonymously
Chapter 8: Hands Up, Chin Down: Reviving a Lost Art
Chapter 9: Paging the Ringside Physician: Where are
you?
Chapter 10: A New Scoring Protocol
Chapter 11: Amateur Boxing vs. Professional Boxing and
the Headguard Debate
Chapter 12: The Boxing Brain vs. The Football Brain:
Name Your Poison
Chapter 13: Boxing vs. Mixed Martial Arts: Which Sport
is More Dangerous?
Chapter 14: To Glove or Not to Glove?—That is the
Question
Chapter 15: Boxing’s Parasites: How the WBC, WBA, IBF
and WBO Continue to Undermine Boxing Safety
Chapter 16: For
Whom the Bell Tolls: Analyses of 14 Boxing Related Fatalities 1990-2022
Chapter 17: The Future of
Professional Boxing
Chapter 18: Summary of
Recommended Laws and Regulations
About the Author :
Mike Silver is the authorof three books. The Arc of Boxing: TheRise and Decline of the Sweet Science (McFarland, 2008) isconsidered a classic and was recently listed as McFarland's # 1 best-seller forJune 2023. His second book, Stars in the Ring: Jewish Champions in theGolden Age of Boxing (Lyons Press, 2016),was called by Publisher's Weekly "An achievement unlikely to be equaled." The Night the Referee Hit Back: MemorableMoments from the World of Boxing (Rowman & Littlefield, 2020) wasdescribed as "A welcome additionto the libraries of boxing fans and sports pundits" by Publisher's Weekly.
Silver's work has appeared in the New York Times, The Ringmagazine, Boxing Monthly, TheInternationalBoxing Research Journalandvarious boxing web sites. He is a former inspector with the New York StateAthletic Commission and a consultant and on-air commentator for nineteen boxingdocumentaries produced by PBS, HBO, ESPN, the History Channel and Madison SquareGarden Network. He was the curator of the "Sting Like a Maccabee: The GoldenAge of the American Jewish Boxer" exhibit at the National Museum of AmericanJewish History in Philadelphia (2004-05), and a co-curator of the San FranciscoJewish Film Festival's centerpiece program, "Jews, Boxing, and Hollywood"(2007). He is a member of the New York State Boxing Hall of Fame.
Review :
"A compelling case for reforms to prevent future boxing tragedies."—Kirkus Reviews
"Anyone
interested in the pursuit of best practices and health-supporting sports
decisions will find When In Doubt, Stop the Bout key to not
just understanding the boxing world’s history and how it is conducted today,
but revised possibilities for a better sport in the future, all delivered in
easily-understood discussions that any reader can readily absorb."―Midwest Book Review
“Mike
Silver is the Sugar Ray Robinson of boxing writers—smooth, smart, powerful, and
tough to beat. The good news is that you can step in the ring with
him and not get hurt.”—Jonathan Eig, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Ali:
A Life and King: A Life
“Lots
of people know boxing, but not many understand it: Its spirit, its
significance, its storied past and probable future. Mike Silver is one of the
few. Anything he writes is essential reading for the true fan.”—David
Margolick, contributing editor at Vanity Fair and author of Beyond
Glory: Joe Louis vs. Max Schmeling, and a World on the Brink
Praise for The Arc of
Boxing
“Lively . . . Silver explored the magic, studied the history.”―Philadelphia Daily News
“If you care about boxing . . . its future, its past, or both . . . then
you have to read this book . . . thoroughly researched . . . articulately
argued.”―Newsday
“True aficionados, whether they
ultimately agree with Silver or not, are sure to enjoy his book for its
unmistakable knowledge and passion.”―The Ring
