Do boxing and chess have anything in common?

[cronus]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-25491642

Do boxing and chess have anything in common?
or how to win against Deep Blue, by punching its lights out

Chess and boxing seem as bizarre a pairing as anything, but they do have something in common, writes David Edmonds.

One is a duel often characterised by cruelty, ruthlessness and violence. And boxing is much the same.

The former world heavyweight champion, Lennox Lewis, is now more likely to be seen hunched over the chess board than in the boxing ring. Yet the very idea that boxers might play chess, and vice versa, strikes many people as incongruous.

Chess after all, is the ultimate cerebral sport - boxing the most nakedly brutal. When his chess opponents discover he used to box, Lennox says, they're convinced they'll whip him. "And when I beat them, they're upset."

(continued, evolution of a over predictable sport in action....?)

[Audley Strange]

Yes,they are traditionally competitive activities between two opponents.

[JimC]

Lucky he was left with enough brain capacity to play...

[Audley Strange]

Lucky he was left with enough brain capacity to play...

If you've ever seen some of those Chess Grand masters you'd be amazed that they have enough brain capacity to sit across from another human being.

[rasetsu]

Both contests occur on a square field.

[Xamonas Chegwé]

Both have a clock that goes "ding".

[Faithfree]

Playing chess whilst wearing boxing gloves has the potential to make the game more entertaining for spectators, especially if the board and pieces are small.

[Xamonas Chegwé]

Thinking about it, boxing with a chess-clock would be interesting. Both combatants have a clock, set to half of the time allotted for the total number of rounds. A coin is flipped to decide whose clock runs first. That person then has to land a punch on his opponent, at which point, the opponent's clock starts ticking and the other guy must defend/dodge until a scoring punch lands - rinse and repeat. There are breaks at the end of each round as per usual but the clocks are not reset. Once the time runs out on your clock, you lose. Wins are by KO, TKO, or TimeOut.

I could see that working. It would make for interesting strategies too. Hyper-aggression during your attack time and pure stonewalling during your defence time.

[pErvinalia]

High level chess apparently relies on excellent pattern recognition skills. Boxing would probably more rely on good reflexes and then other anatomical aspects from training. So in short, they've probably got not much to do with each other. LL was probably blessed with both a brain and a big fast dangerous body.

Much like myself, really.

[JimC]

High level chess apparently relies on excellent pattern recognition skills. Boxing would probably more rely on good reflexes and then other anatomical aspects from training. So in short, they've probably got not much to do with each other. LL was probably blessed with both a brain and a big fast dangerous body.

Much like myself, really.

[Pappa]

Lennox Lewis was always into chess. He commented on his success as a boxer being connected to his chess practice because both require an understanding of strategy to be successful.

[Blind groper]

Anyone know why boxing is called a "gentleman's sport?"


I discovered this recently. It originated in England, and was taught to the aristocrats for the express purpose of responding violently to any of the lower classes who failed to show respect.

That makes my appreciation of boxing as a sport drop to new lows. What a gross, and barbaric so-called sport.

[Hermit]

Anyone know why boxing is called a "gentleman's sport?"


I discovered this recently. It originated in England, and was taught to the aristocrats for the express purpose of responding violently to any of the lower classes who failed to show respect.

Ahem. Boxing originated a bit earlier than that. Here is a depiction of boxing as practiced about 3500 years ago:

[JimC]

Anyone know why boxing is called a "gentleman's sport?"


I discovered this recently. It originated in England, and was taught to the aristocrats for the express purpose of responding violently to any of the lower classes who failed to show respect.

That makes my appreciation of boxing as a sport drop to new lows. What a gross, and barbaric so-called sport.

Much too narrow an interpretation. Sure, I read the same comment in Pinker's book myself, but it's origin, in modern form, was not for that express purpose - that was just one aristocrat's opinion. Anyway, in most cases, an aristocrat would have a retinue of hard men, who would do the job themselves...

Not that I'm a fan - it simply doesn't interest me as a spectator sport, and there are certainly long-term brain damage issues for serious participants...

[Audley Strange]

Most aristos had canes with which to beat the plebs with. IIRC it was called the "Gentleman's sport" because it was a replacement for duelling, was seen as a more sophisticated way to end a disagreement rather than sword or pistol.