Historic Ring Sizes

[The Old LefHook]

Duran/Viruet II--18 1/2 feet. Described by the announcer as a good sized ring for Viruet to move in.

[The Old LefHook]

When you watch a fight where the ring size is mentioned, record it in this thread. Soon we will have a statistical record.

[The Old LefHook]

Griffith/Paret I. A twenty footer.

[BattlingNelson]

I just watched Jeffries-Fitz in another thread. Boy that ring looked small.

[billeau2]

I just watched Jeffries-Fitz in another thread. Boy that ring looked small.

Was there even a standard ring size back then?

[Sugar Adam Ali]

I don't know actual size but the ring for Floyd-maidana 2 was the biggest ring I have ever seen.. Does anyone know the size?

[The Old LefHook]

I just watched Jeffries-Fitz in another thread. Boy that ring looked small.

Back in the day, venues across the country may have had odd sized rings they set up whenever a fight was due. Knowing when and where fights were held could be the key to understanding disparities in ring sizes.

[Ray Corso]

Everlast made avalible three sized rings in the 70s I know that because I bought one. The sizes were determined by the iron girders that the ply sheets were cut for and layed on. They offered two types of mattings.
A horsehair rolled out matt or a foam flooring.
The three sizes were measured defining the inside of the roped area and how much apron you wanted to use. The sizes were basicly a 20', 22' & 24'!!!
I bought a 20' and added extra turnbuckles to bring the inside of the ring down to 17 sq. for my gym along with a 13sq. floor ring. Both utilizing horsehair flooring.
For boxing shows we made a 18' with 2' aproon.

The major venues in the New York City area all used the same company to set up a ring with St. Nicks I think was the only venue that owned its own. The company had two rings an old beat up ring flooring that used the old planks and a newer one with ply sheets. It had three ropes covered in hard rubber.
I fought in the plank ring and worked many corners in it too and it was an experience to say the least. Sometimes they'd flip a blank that was warped one way to far and the middle of it was like a step hahahaha....
I can't think of the companies name but I do remember the old beat up truck that thing was delivered in, as bad as the ring.
Most pro fights are atleast 20' with atleast a 2' aproon. Ali had a 24' in his contracts for some time but 20' & 22" were the normal set ups.
Blue Horizon at one time was a 18.6' and I remember the old "Rhodes on the Pawtucket" in Rhode Island ring I boxed in years ago was a 16.6 (loved it) HA! Runners would be panicing in that one, loved it! HA!

Ray.

Most amateur standards are atleast a 20' with a 2'+ aproon

[The Old LefHook]

Everlast made avalible three sized rings in the 70s I know that because I bought one. The sizes were determined by the iron girders that the ply sheets were cut for and layed on. They offered two types of mattings.
A horsehair rolled out matt or a foam flooring.
The three sizes were measured defining the inside of the roped area and how much apron you wanted to use. The sizes were basicly a 20', 22' & 24'!!!
I bought a 20' and added extra turnbuckles to bring the inside of the ring down to 17 sq. for my gym along with a 13sq. floor ring. Both utilizing horsehair flooring.
For boxing shows we made a 18' with 2' aproon.

The major venues in the New York City area all used the same company to set up a ring with St. Nicks I think was the only venue that owned its own. The company had two rings an old beat up ring flooring that used the old planks and a newer one with ply sheets. It had three ropes covered in hard rubber.
I fought in the plank ring and worked many corners in it too and it was an experience to say the least. Sometimes they'd flip a blank that was warped one way to far and the middle of it was like a step hahahaha....
I can't think of the companies name but I do remember the old beat up truck that thing was delivered in, as bad as the ring.
Most pro fights are atleast 20' with atleast a 2' aproon. Ali had a 24' in his contracts for some time but 20' & 22" were the normal set ups.
Blue Horizon at one time was a 18.6' and I remember the old "Rhodes on the Pawtucket" in Rhode Island ring I boxed in years ago was a 16.6 (loved it) HA! Runners would be panicing in that one, loved it! HA!

Ray.

Most amateur standards are atleast a 20' with a 2'+ aproon

Nice and informative post. Just for clarity, is that 20 feet minus an apron or twenty feet plus an apron?

[Ray Corso]

plus..........the floor size is the over all dimention of the ring. You use different sized turn buckles to determine the inside area.
Most buyer will order two complete sets of turn buckles so they can alter the dimentions. Years ago there were fighters that would ad ring sizes into a contract and the promoter has to deliver. I know that Ali did it in parts of his career. I would guess plenty of the lateral movement guys who carried that kind of clout also had stipulations about ring size.
If Pep was in a 24sq you'd never hit him!!!!!

My 13sq gym ring was double horse hair so that my boxers who were movers could really move in a competion ring, they were on skates!!

Ray