Boxing vs. Sport (Boxing)

[Not]

Is there a difference?

[Bruno]

Originally Posted by Not

Is there a difference?

Very much so. In Combat Sport (Boxing) there is a set fighting space, there's a list of legal targets and everything else you must leave alone, you must wear protective gear, you must stop when the other person submits or is too injured, third (or fourth or fifth or sixth...) parties won't show up behind you with a chair to break over your head...

You can't roll against Combat Sport (Boxing) outside of a sporting boxing match. If you want to punch "scientifically" in real combat, you roll Boxing. If you don't know Boxing but you know Combat Sport (Boxing), there's a -4 default penalty between the two because your opponent isn't following the rules and you've only learned how to fight someone following the rules.

[Bruno]

Reread the skill descriptions for Boxing, Karate, Judo, and Wrestling.. These don't represent specific sports (otherwise what we'd actually have is a skill called "Martial Sport" that requires specialization by style). There's more on the distinction in GURPS Martial Arts (much more...)

[Not]

Originally Posted by Bruno

Very much so. In Combat Sport (Boxing) there is a set fighting space, there's a list of legal targets and everything else you must leave alone, you must wear protective gear, you must stop when the other person submits or is too injured, third (or fourth or fifth or sixth...) parties won't show up behind you with a chair to break over your head...

You can't roll against Combat Sport (Boxing) outside of a sporting boxing match. If you want to punch "scientifically" in real combat, you roll Boxing. If you don't know Boxing but you know Combat Sport (Boxing), there's a -4 default penalty between the two because your opponent isn't following the rules and you've only learned how to fight someone following the rules.

Go the other way. How likely is the Boxer to win the refereed match against the Sport (Boxing)-er?

[DouglasCole]

Originally Posted by Not

Go the other way. How likely is the Boxer to win the refereed match against the Sport (Boxing)-er?

He will probably get disqualified, or take a real penalty when he's on the ropes, since combat boxing is more or less the skill of trained punching while wearing armor on an honest-to-goodness battlefield, if you look at what it gives you.

[Icelander]

The default is -3, not -4.

Professional boxers probably have Boxing and Games (Boxing), according to MA. Boxing Sport is for the Olympic sport, much further from full-contact fighting.

[Ashtagon]

I was under the impression that a lot of "professional boxing" is heavily choreographed, so they would actually have Boxing Art.

I must also admit though, that until this thread, I thought the Combat Art/Sport skill only applied to Melee Weapon skills, and not to unarmed melee skills.

[Donny Brook]

Is there a difference between Hopscotch and Sport (Hopscotch)?

Would anyone outside of the sport ever train in just punching but not other aspects of fighting?