How To Be A Chess-Boxing Champion Against All The Odds

(WCBO [CC BY 3.0 de], via Wikimedia Commons)

Growing in popularity in numerous countries this cross between the two very tactical worlds of boxing and chess, this hybrid sport was first created as performance art and is now a full on competitive sport. It is not for the faint hearted, those best left ringside putting at wager on at Bet365, one of the best online sportsbook sites in the UK these days, however if you really want to get involved in this exhilarating competition here’s how to be a chess-boxing champion.

1. The Rules

Typically a full run match will last 11 rounds. This breaks down into comprising of six rounds of chess (the match should begin and end with a round of chess) alternating with rounds of boxing. The loser being either knocked out, timed out, or checkmated. It will be vital in understanding how to be a chess-boxing champion to manage not just your physical and mental abilities directly for at the board or in the ring, but being well aware of just where the boundaries lie in the rules.

2. The Qualifications

Given the inherent dangers in boxing there are strict qualifications for participants that you will have to meet as you explore how to be a chess-boxing champion. Entrants must have an Elo rating of over 1600, to begin with, and have already fought in 50 amateur boxing bouts. This prevents needless injury to the unsuitable and stops people hitting up Bet365 to bet on sports in the UK and be faced with the chance to wager on someone that really shouldn’t be in the ring.

3. The Boxing

With 50 bouts under your belt by the time you start looking into the realities of how to be a chess-boxing champion this should go without saying, but since there will inevitably one or two who’ll forget; the point is to knock the other guy out. You can, if you like try to simply make him too groggy for the next round of chess, but that’s high risk and you should always be going for a clean knockout unless it’s your chess game you particularly expect to lean upon in your matches.

4. The Chess

There are various forms of Blitz Chess played around the world and delving into how to be a chess-boxing champion you’ll quickly discover it’ll pay to be good at all of them. The insight each variant can give is invaluable in most match scenarios. Remember matches can end in a draw so unless you want your friends and neighbors to rue taking advantage of UK gambling laws to back you, you’ll want to ensure you have ever edge possible when at the chess board.

5. The Strategy

As we’ve already alluded to whilst it is possible to be master of both disciplines your inherent skills and talents will tend toward one or other, and if you want to know how to be a chess-boxing champion you’ll have to be very honest with yourself about which is your strength. Fast victories often come from a mediocre chess game and a devastating punch, far more so than from a superb chess game and a jaw as brittle as sugar glass, so don’t skimp on your boxing training. 

6. The Timing

The time limits on both the rounds of boxing and the chess games that dovetail them will have to, very naturally, be born in mind at all times, however the more important issue of timing is being able to rapidly and effectively lower your heart rate to concentrate on a fast moving game of chess after moments earlier attempting to knock someone’s block off. In the list of how to be a chess-boxing champion that physiological timing is all-important and will need careful attention.

7. The Goals

With four weight classes for men and women each it is, of course, the goal of all those learning how to be a chess-boxing champion to reach and win the World Championships, and keeping an eye on what the WCBO is planning for the future could stand you in good stead as a bid for inclusion in the Olympics seems in the offing at some point soon, after which it will be commonplace to wager on it at Bet365, one of the best online betting sites in the UK these days.