BoxRec.com is, without a doubt, the most essential website in the sport today. The public can access BoxRec’s remarkable collection of data and fight records through their website. Viewing and using the data is free, and signing up for a free account unlocks much more information, such as combatant weights for individual bouts.
In summary, BoxRec is committed to keeping all professional boxers’ records up to date, both male and female. It also has a MediaWiki-based boxing encyclopedia that may be used to learn about the sport’s culture and history. It’s the ideal companion to the best boxing betting sites.
BoxRec is the go-to source for statistical data about upcoming bouts, such as the number of rounds scheduled, location, and officials, as well as historical points of interest, such as a fighter’s total number of rounds, overall resume, and fight-specific outcomes, for almost everyone in the boxing world. It’s a necessary component of any boxing betting strategy.
BoxRec’s History
The hobby-site turned official recordkeeper for both the US and the UK was founded in 1999 as a simple database tool to assist London-based promoter John Sheppard in keeping track of specific combatants. Sheppard’s original goal, according to Thomas Hauser of SecondsOut.com, was totally utilitarian:
“We had a matchmaker that I didn’t have complete faith in. As a way of keeping track of him, I created a small database to track all the British boxers. At the time, the Internet was exploding. ‘Why not publish the data on the Internet so that anyone may utilize it?’ I reasoned.
However, once Sheppard uploaded his site to a server for public access in May 2000, it quickly grew into a vital resource with massive daily traffic. The reach was extensive. By 2005, Sheppard had made BoxRec his full-time career and the go-to resource for boxing recordkeepers all over the world.
BoxRec’s Operation
Volunteer editors from all around the world contribute to BoxRec. These dedicated recordkeepers make sure that information about fights held in their area is always up to date. The editors of BoxRec originate from 49 different nations, with the United States and the United Kingdom having the most volunteers.
“Our editors and matchmakers enter scheduled bouts for current records,” Shepperd explained. “Editors who observe fights frequently send in preliminary results. Then, when the official commission reports arrive a few days later, we validate these findings.”
BoxRec’s purpose also includes giving authentic historical data on fights dating back to before the start of the twentieth century. These facts and figures are gradually collected from old newspaper and magazine sources and placed into BoxRec’s database by researchers as they become available.
“It’s basically just a standard website,” Shepperd explained, “with a framework on the front end and a relational database behind it.”
However, BoxRec’s utility has been critical in a sport that has a long history of dishonest characters, particularly matchmakers and promoters, who are continually looking for new ways to bend the rules for personal advantage.
Criticism of BoxRec
While the objective and purpose of BoxRec are widely praised by those in the boxing community, there are aspects of the website that many in the sport disagree with. The rankings system and the absence of demarcation between true world title bouts and secondary ones are the two most prominent criticisms regarding BoxRec.
“I believe BoxRec is an excellent research and reference tool for anyone who enjoys or is interested in boxing,” she stated. Doug Fischer of RingTV.com. “It allows us to see who battled who, when and where, at the press of a button, from fans and media to matchmakers and publicists.”
Those who rely solely on BoxRec, though, should be cautious, according to Fischer.
“It’s not 100 percent accurate, and you shouldn’t judge a boxer’s worth purely on the basis of those metrics or BoxRec’s ranking system.”
Springs Toledo, a well-known author, and historian agrees.
“They should challenge the sport’s established quo,” Toledo added. “And it would start with them reconsidering their practice of inserting fictitious title defenses in their entries.”
How to Make Use of BoxRec
BoxRec provides excellent information regarding fights and fighters, but before betting on any of the best boxing betting sites, it’s important to keep to the most useful data points BoxRec provides.
The greatest site to look at fighter resumes is BoxRec. This covers information such as the fighter’s height, age, and reach, as well as his or her win-loss records, fight results, and opponent names. BoxRec records contain information on whether or not a fighter made weight for the fight, as well as a simple way to look at a fighter’s last several fights to see if he has a winning streak over the relevant competition.
However, Boxrec’s ranking system is entirely dependent on statistics. Many in the sport regard it as flawed and ineffective. It is not regarded as a reliable source of divisional rankings by industry executives, and some of the historical and pound-for-pound lists are ridiculous. While statistics and other quantitative measures can be used to establish relevant ranking systems in sports like baseball and basketball, the nature of stat-keeping in boxing is such that there is little data recorded and retained about fights, so relying solely on statistical comparisons is a sure bet
Furthermore, the proliferation of world title belts offered by alphabet organizations, as well as Boxrec’s listing of regional and secondary titles alongside more legitimate championships such as those offered by the four main sanctioning bodies in boxing (IBF, WBA, WBC, and WBO), make reviewing fight records and fighters for relevant championship information a difficult task—even for those who have been involved in the sport for a long time.
The fact that Boxrec does not list the one most historically significant accomplishment a fighter can achieve on their fighter record pages: winning a lineal world boxing championship, is even more concerning. Lineal world titles, such as those compiled by Ring Magazine and the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board, are widely regarded as the highest distinction a fighter can achieve in any weight class.
More to Think About
Before placing a wager on any of boxing’s top betting markets, there are a number of key considerations to consider. With 17 different weight classes and a plethora of sanctioning organizations and ranking systems, boxing is a unique culture. Boxrec is just one of several resources to consider before betting on any of the markets, so read Ibebet’s in-depth boxing betting strategy guide to make the most of every chance. We also talked about the Best Boxing Weight Classes for Bettors to Consider. So make sure to check it out.
