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OFFICIAL FFC® KICKBOXING RULES AND REGULATIONS
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FORMAT

Final Fight Championship® (FFC®) matches are broken down as follows:

Round 1 – 3 minutes
Round 2  – 3 minutes
Round 3  – 3 minutes

  1. Extra round – 3 minutes (if necessary)
  2. Extra round – 3 minutes (if necessary)

There is one-minute between rounds.

MATCHES ARE WON VIA

– Knockout
– Technical Knockout
– Decision, Disqualification, Draw or No Contest.

Both the referee and the ring doctor have full authority to stop the fight.

Decision:

If the match goes the distance, then the outcome of the bout is determined by the three judges.

A decision is made according to the following:

  • damage given to the opponent
  • Effective punching or kicking
  • the effort made to finish the fight via KO
  • aggressiveness
  • ring control

Scoring:

The above criteria are listed according to priority. The fight is scored round by round via classical 10-point must system.  Under the 10-Point Must Scoring System, 10 points must be awarded to the winner of the round and 9 points or less must be awarded to the loser, except for a rare even round, which is scored (10-10).

  • a round is to be scored as a 10-10 round when both contestants appear to be fighting evenly and neither contestant shows clear dominance in a round;
  • a round is to be scored as a 10-9 round when a contestant wins by a close margin, landing the greater number of effective punching or kicking
  • a round is to be scored as a 10-8 round when a contestant overwhelmingly dominates or (and) delivers knockdown
  • a round is to be scored as a 10-7 round when a contestant totally dominates or (and) deliveres 2 or more knockdowns

EXTRA ROUNDS AND DRAW

If there is a draw after three rounds, the judges’ scores are thrown out and one or two extra three-minute rounds are contested.

The judges’ decision will then come from the scoring of only that one extra round.

If, after the extra round(s), there is still a draw, the judges will decide a winner based on the flow of the entire match, considering even the slightest difference.

A fight can only end in a draw if both fighters go down at the same time and cannot get up, or in the case of accidental injury in the late stages of the contest.

The three-knockdown rule is in effect (three knockdowns in a round result in a technical knockout).

The four-knockdown rule is in effect (four knockdowns in the whole match results in a technical knockout).

The mandatory eight count is in effect (the referee must count to at least “eight” on all knockdowns).

The standing eight count is in effect (the referee has the right to declare a knockdown on a fighter who appears to be in a dangerous condition to continue in the match).

A fighter can be saved by the bell only in the last round.

ILLEGAL ACTIONS

The following actions in FFC kick boxing matches are considered fouls:

     Illegal actions are:

  • Using the head or elbow to deliver a blow
  • Attacking the opponent in the groin
  • Delivering wrestling or judo throwing or submission techniques
  • Thumbing, choking or biting the opponent
  • Punching the opponent in the throat
  • Attacking the opponent while he is down or in the process of getting up
  • Attacking the opponent after the referee calls a break
  • Holding the ropes
  • Using offensive language to the referee
  • Attacking the back of the head with a punch
  • Attempting to cause the opponent to fall out of the ring
  • Voluntarily exiting the ring during the course of a match
  • Attacking an opponent who turns around and shows his back (if the opponent loses his will to fight)
  • Delivering a backspin blow in an unauthorized area
  • Charging inside the opponent’s arms with the head held low (inducing a head-butt)
  • Fighting in a passive manner (without attacking), including continuous holding and clinching
  • Attacking more than once while holding the opponent’s kicking leg
  • Clinching with two hands holding opponent’s neck

Fouls may result in a point being deducted by the official scorekeeper from the offending contestant’s score. The scorekeeper, not the judges, will be responsible for calculating the true score after factoring in the point deduction.

Only a referee can assess a foul. If the referee does not call the foul, judges must not make that assessment on their own and should not factor such into their scoring calculations.

If a foul is committed:

  • The referee shall call timeout.
  • The referee shall order the offending contestant to a neutral location.
  • The referee shall check the fouled contestant’s condition and safety.
  • The referee shall then assess the foul to the offending contestant and deduct points if the referee deems it appropriate, and notify the commission, the corners, the official scorekeeper of his decision on whether the foul was accidental or intentional and whether a point is to be taken away.

Low Blow Foul:

A fighter who has been struck with a low blow is allowed up to 5 minutes to recover from the foul as long as in the ringside doctor’s opinion the fighter may possibly continue on in the contest.

If the fighter states that they can continue on before the five minutes of time have expired, the referee shall, as soon as practical, restart the fight.

If the fighter goes over the 5 minute time allotment, and the fight cannot be restarted, the contest must come to an end with the outcome determined by the round and time in which the fight was stopped.

Fighter Fouled by other than low blow:

If a contest of kickboxing is stopped because of an accidental foul, the referee shall determine whether the fighter who has been fouled can continue or not. If the fighter’s chance of winning has not been seriously jeopardized as a result of the foul and if the foul did not involve a concussive impact to the head of the fighter who has been fouled, the referee may order the contest or exhibition continued after a recuperative interval of not more than 5 minutes. Immediately after separating the fighters, the referee shall inform the FFC supervisor representative of his determination that the foul was accidental.

If a fighter is fouled by blow that the referee deems illegal, the referee should stop the action and call for time. The referee may take the injured fighter to the ringside doctor and have the ringside doctor examine the fighter as to their ability to continue on in the contest. The ringside doctor has up to 5 minutes to make their determination. If the ringside doctor determines that the fighter can continue in the contest, the referee shall as soon as practical restart the fight. Unlike the low blow foul rule, the fighter does not have up to 5 minutes of time to use, at their discretion, and must continue the fight when instructed to by the referee.

For a foul other than a low blow, if the injured fighter is deemed not fit to continue, by the referee, the referee must immediately call a halt to the bout. If the fighter is deemed not fit to continue, by the referee, even though some of the 5 minute foul time is still remaining, the fighter cannot avail himself of the remaining time and the fight must be stopped.

If the referee stops the contest and employs the use of the ringside doctor, the ringside physician’s examinations shall not exceed 5 minutes. If 5 minutes is exceeded, the fight cannot be re-started and the contest must end. In the event that a fighter is injured by illegal actions, then at the discretion of the referee and ring doctor, the round will attempt to be resumed after enough time has been given to the fighter to recover. If the match cannot be continued due to the severity of the injury then the fighter who perpetrated the action will be disqualified.

THE “NO CONTEST“ RULE

When an illegal action disqualifies both fighters or the judges decide to stop the fight because of an accidental injury in the first round then the fight shall be called a “No Contest.” However, in the case that the accident happens during or after the second round, a decision shall be made according to the fighter’s performance during the first round and the preceding round(s) before the accident occurred.

SUPERVISOR

Supervisor is a person appointed by the FFC and also a person who enjoys a good reputation when it comes to the sport of MMA. Supervisor oversees judging and regulation of sports competition in the ring, as well as the entire event. If the supervisor assesses that the referee’s actions or judges’ scoring were not in compliance with the FFC regulations or decision made by the official medical staff, he is allowed to intervene.

Intervention may include:

  • Giving suggestions to the referee
  • Giving suggestions to the official doctor
  • Changing the decision on the outcome of the match
  • Disqualification of a fighter
  • Other

SPECIFICATIONS FOR HAND WRAPING

In all weight classes, the bandages on each contestant’s hand shall be restricted to soft gauze cloth of not more than 15 yards in length and two inches in width, held in place by not more than 10 feet of surgeon’s tape, one inch in width, for each hand.

Surgeon’s adhesive tape shall be placed directly on each hand for protection near the wrist. The tape may cross the back of the hand twice and extend to cover and protect the knuckles when the hand is clenched to make a fist.

The bandages shall be evenly distributed across the hand.

Bandages and tape shall be placed on the contestant’s hands in the dressing room and checked and signed by official FFC person.

MOUTHPIECES

All contestants are required to wear a mouthpiece during competition. The mouthpiece shall be subject to examination and approval by the attending physician.

The round cannot begin without the mouthpiece in place.

If the mouthpiece is involuntarily dislodged during competition, the referee shall call time, clean the mouthpiece, and reinsert the mouthpiece at the first opportune moment without interfering with the immediate action

WEIGHTCLASSES

Weight classes are as follows:

  • Featherweight Class: Weight less or equal to 66 kg
  • Lightweight Class: Weight less or equal to 70 kg
  • Welterweight Class: Weight less or equal to 77 kg
  • Middleweight Class: Weight less or equal to 85 kg
  • Light heavyweight Class: Weight less or equal to 95 kg
  • Heavyweight Class: Weight more than 95 kg

Official weigh ins are to be done one day prior to the match. There shall be allowed a 0.5 kg weigh allowance. If a fighter does not meet the official scales he has 1 hour to attempt the second try. If he fails to pass the scales for second time, his opponent can agree to the fight anyways. 20 percent of the fight purse will be given from the fighter that failed to meet the scales to his opponent.

FFC may also approve catch weight bouts, subject to their review and discretion.

RING

The FFC ring is 7.5 meters by 7.5 meters.

EXCLUSIVITY

Refers to fighters with long term contracts and belt holders:

Fighter agrees not to compete in any other fight, bout or martial arts competition without the express written consent of the FFC.  If the Fighter decides to fight in any other fight, bout or martial arts competition without the express written consent of the FFC the penalty is US$30,000 (Thirty Thousand United States Dollars).

In case the Fighter is FFC champion and fights in any other promotion and loses, he automatically loses his FFC title.