Why Is Clinching Legal?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\nClinching IS legal to the extent that the referee allows it. The main rules on clinching is that two boxers cannot clinch for too long. This rarely happens anyway as the referee usually breaks up a cinch relatively fast, depending on how much the two fighters are \u2018working\u2019. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
You may hear the referee shout \u2018Work! Work!\u2019 what he means is that he wants to see some actual action, some real clinching happening, rather than simply hugging each other for respite. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It is completely up to the referee when a clinch should be broken, but they seldom let them go on for too long.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The main rule with clinching is that when the referee breaks the clinch you must take a solid back step before you engage your opponent again, and the clinch must immediately be broken when the referee stops it. The clinch can be broken without the referee stepping in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You can punch and engage your opponent within a clinch, you simply cannot throw a punch \u2018on the break\u2019 i.e. when the referee breaks it up. A fighter must take a solid step back before throwing a punch when the referee has intervened. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Although, if the clinch is disengaged by both fighters, without the input of the referee, you can legally throw a punch on the break. In MMA for example, where clinching is a big transitional technique, one common technique is to throw a punch \u2018on the break\u2019 of a clinch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Clinching is allowed within the sport of boxing as it can be utilised effectively by a good boxer. We will go into how a boxer can use a clinch in a second, but Boxing is a high intensity sport and if clinching wasn\u2019t allowed then the fighters would be a lot more tired by the end of the fight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A clinch can often be a small pause but the fighters still must remain switched on to watch for punches within the clinch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n