60 second break between rounds increased to 67 seconds!

The ABC (Association of Boxing Commissions) have chosen to change the amount of time that boxers will have between each round. For many years now, the break between each round has been 60 seconds but it has now been increased to 67 seconds. However, this rule only applies to fights that are broadcast live on TV.

According to the ABC, this makes boxing more broadcast friendly and will enhance the viewing pleasure of the people watching all around the world.

"With the approval of the member commission.. An extension of up to seven seconds will be allowed in addition to the 60 second rest period for boxing matches that are broadcast live," explained ABC's executive director, Tim Lueckenhoff.

"The rest period will remain the same, whereby the whistle will sound at 50 seconds, the corner person will have to be out of the ring at 60 seconds, and the referees and boxers will continue boxing upon notification o the producer, who notes that the agreed-upon time has elapsed."

It was NBC Sports that made the request to increase the time between rounds to 67 seconds. The network will now be able to air more commercials and increase the amount of money it's boxing broadcasts can make  while also still showing the highlights from the previous rounds. The official request came from Jonathan Miller.

"NBC has a major concern with the rigid timing between rounds set forth by the boxing commissions in each state," Miller wrote. "We feel strongly this mandate negatively impacts the quality of television production. The 'Fight Night' series will simply not survive without advertising support and allowing us to be storytellers."

"We must run two, 30-second commercial units between each round. The inability to come back from a one-minute commercial break without any additional time to show highlights from the previous round and set up the next round is a disservice to the boxing viewer and most importantly the athletes who are giving their all in the ring."

"This change will make the sport more broadcast-friendly and substantially increase a boxer's ability to make a living on a platform other than the pay channels of HBO, Showtime and PPV... "The NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL all have adapted to this broadcast friendly model and with their network partners, customized mutually beneficial television timings."

"The timing change will not negatively impact the integrity of competition but only enhance the content in building stars and elevating the great sport of boxing!"