Team boxing? Philadelphia Smoke fighting to give the sport a makeover
A new sports league in Philadelphia is fighting to give boxing a makeover. Instead of two fighters going 12 rounds, this league is doubling the number of rounds, but there's a catch: it's a team style.
Team Combat League is professional boxing, with a twist. It's the nation's first-ever team boxing league.
"That's something I've been wanting since I was a kid because high school has football, soccer, basketball teams, but we don't have that for boxing," Francisco Rodriguez, a lightweight boxer, said. "So, this is new and I'm excited and blessed to be in this opportunity. I'm going to train hard and win these fights."
How Team Combat League boxing works
There are 12 teams in 12 cities across the country, including the Philadelphia Smoke.
League matches feature 24 three-minute rounds where the boxers are switched out after every round.
One round, and you're done.
"It's one round of non-stop action. It's exciting," Smoke head coach Bobby Kane said. "When you're in there, you're not going to sit down in your seat the whole entire time. It's action-packed, non-stop. It's best fighter vs best fighter. A lot of people are used to taking their time and studying a fighter in the beginning for rounds, but the fighters that come to TCL say this one is harder than doing that."
"It's back to wall, time to go"
Ray Robinson, a super middleweight boxer for the Smoke, says team boxing is more of a "crowd-pleaser to me."
"I think the crowd wins here because you get to see so many different styles in one night," Robinson said. "There's no warm-up round or 'let me see how his style is.' It's back to wall, time to go."
Fighters hearing their teammates cheer them on in the ring brings a camaraderie that boxing has never had.
"In a traditional fight, you hear three people in your corner, but here you hear the whole team," Rodriguez said. "You hear everyone give their thoughts, motivating you when you feel like you're getting tired. They push you even more."
"Not just an all-men sport"
Nine of the 12 weight classes are for men, and the last three are for women, making this a co-ed league.
"We're bringing female boxing up, and it's not just an all-men sport, boxing," Smoke lightweight boxer Shera Mae Patricio said. "So, we're exposing females out there saying, 'We can actually do the same thing as a man in the sport.'"
The Philadelphia Smoke won the championship last year during their first year in the league. They're hoping to repeat this season.
