In When in Doubt, Stop the Bout, renowned boxing historian Mike Silver presents a shocking exposé of the sordid underbelly of professional boxing, and uncovers the sports criminally flawed infrastructure and those responsible for it.
From compromised referees to poorly trained ringside physicians to an insidious cartel of sanctioning organizations approving dangerous mismatches, Silver lays bare the corruption, the negligence, and the incompetence that has made a dangerous sport even more dangerous.
But aside from unmasking the chaotic mess that afflicts boxing, this book for the first time proposes groundbreaking practical solutions that will mitigate the danger and save lives. Penetrating and persuasive, When in Doubt, Stop the Bout will change forever how you see the sport of boxing.
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 Referees 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: Boxings 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
Mike Silver is the author of three books. The Arc of Boxing: The Rise and Decline of the Sweet Science (McFarland, 2008) is considered a classic and was recently listed as McFarlands # 1 best-seller for June 2023. His second book, Stars in the Ring: Jewish Champions in the Golden Age of Boxing (Lyons Press, 2016), was called by Publishers Weekly An achievement unlikely to be equaled. The Night the Referee Hit Back: Memorable Moments from the World of Boxing (Rowman & Littlefield, 2020) was described as A welcome addition to the libraries of boxing fans and sports pundits by Publishers Weekly.
Silvers work has appeared in the New York Times, The Ring magazine, Boxing Monthly, The International Boxing Research Journal, and various boxing web sites. He is a former inspector with the New York State Athletic Commission and a consultant and on-air commentator for nineteen boxing documentaries produced by PBS, HBO, ESPN, the History Channel and Madison Square Garden Network. He was the curator of the Sting Like a Maccabee: The Golden Age of the American Jewish Boxer exhibit at the National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia (2004-05), and a co-curator of the San Francisco Jewish Film Festivals centerpiece program, Jews, Boxing, and Hollywood (2007). He is a member of the New York State Boxing Hall of Fame.
