The God-Awful Clinch...

[Pno]

for a good understanding of how a boxer should handle an opponent that clinches, see the Sanders vs WK match. they got close together, WK went for the clinch, as usual when boxers get too close together, then Sanders unleashed his powerful left and knocked WK's block right off. WK has not been the same since then. I think an experienced fighter can take advantage of an opponent over-clinching

[Toller]

This is a bit of a grey area. The question is when a fighter's clinching starts to become excessive. I've seen several fighters disqualified for clinching repeatedly when making NO ATTEMPT (or very little) to fight the opponent (eg Tyson-Ferguson, Lewis-Akinwande). However, when a boxer is still making a fight out of it, it tends to be deemed legal, and in Ruiz's fights this tends to be why he isn't disqualified (see the damage Ruiz did to Oquendo in the clinch).

But how referees deal with it is still very inconsistent - some allow it for a while before breaking it up, others break it up straight away (eg Jay Nady).

The rules and how a ref interprets them need to be cleared up, especially with such a boring champion. As someone else said, I am of the opinion that when it is a major part of a fight plan is when it's going too far and the ref needs to step in and do something about it.

[average_expert]

for a good understanding of how a boxer should handle an opponent that clinches, see the Sanders vs WK match. they got close together, WK went for the clinch, as usual when boxers get too close together, then Sanders unleashed his powerful left and knocked WK's block right off. WK has not been the same since then. I think an experienced fighter can take advantage of an opponent over-clinching

thats right experienced fighters can get around it

[bonafuwa]

I agree, clinching is a very deep science indeed. It throws off your opponents rhythm, allows you to clear you hear if you're stunned, and gives you a few seconds breather if you need it. Ali was a master clincher. Just don't over do it ala John Ruiz and Henry Akinwande in the Lewis fight.

[Truth]

I alwasy thougth clinching was legal, but that a boxer would get penalized for excessive clinching. I just looked up the rules and it clearly states that hugging or wrestling is not permitted. I think clinching is what turns a lot of people off from boxing. Personally the **** pisses me off. It's just a ****ty tactic. I feel like if you didn't come to fight you should do everyone a favor and keep your ass at home...

Well said