1. The three scoring judges of a bout shall individually score each round by marking their scorecards.
2. At the end of each bout, the referee shall collect the scorecards from each judge and bring them to the IKF representative at ringside.
3. The scorekeeper or the IKF Representative shall then check all the scores on each individual card.
4. Once the scores are confirmed, the scorekeeper or representative give the official scores to the event ring announcer. The scores shall be read in totals of the fight as stated on the official announcement card, not each round. Once done, the ring announcer shall announce the winner by corner color first and than the fighter's name.

1. JUDGING EACH ROUND
   • Each judge shall score each fighter between 7 and 10 points for each round.
   • Fighters are judged by domination, effectiveness of technique, aggressiveness and kickboxing ability.
   • Judges will evaluate which fighter DOMINATED the bout. NOT who threw the harder punches or kicks (Unless there were a lot of them), but who landed the most and did the most damage during the entire round.
   • ONE good hard punch or a short flurry could win a round for a fighter in a round that up until that moment appeared EVEN to the judge.
   • ONE good hard punch or a short flurry WILL NOT win a round for a fighter in a round that up until that moment was being dominated by the other fighter UNLESS the flurry or strike resulted in a knockdown or standing 8 count.
   • The bout is scored by points and or effective blows landed to a target area. The fighter who dominates the round will be given a 10 while the other fighter a 9. To understand this better, Here is a good Article on Judging: CLICK HERE!
   • No judge shall give a fighter less than 7 points for a round "UNLESS" there are "Point Deductions". See "POINT DEDUCTIONS" below.
2. KNOCKDOWNS OR STANDING 8 COUNTS
   • ONLY the referee makes the determination whether a fighter was knocked down or needs a standing 8 count.
   • In MuayThai, a fighter can be knocked down and NOT receive a standing 8 count "IF" he/she gets up to their feet "QUICKLY". In MuayThai rules this is known as a "FLASH KNOCKDOWN". If the fallen fighter does not rise quickly, the referee will decide whether to give the standing 8 count or not.
   • When a punch, kick or flurry of strikes results in the referee administering a standing 8 count or counting over a fighter that was knocked down, no matter what happened prior to this (Unless there was another standing 8 count earlier or knockdown) the fighter who did not receive the 8 count will ALWAYS be awarded the score of 10 for the round. Even if he was losing the round up until that point.
   • SCORING THE KNOCKDOWN OR STANDING 8 COUNT
     • Scoring a knockdown or standing 8 count is not as easy as giving one fighter 10 and the other 8. For example;
     • If the round was even or the fighter who was not given the standing 8 count was dominating the round, at the end, the round should be scored 10-8. 10 for the fighter who did not get the standing 8 count or knockdown and 8 for the counted fighter. This is the easiest example of judging the standing 8 count or knockdown.
     • If the above fighter who was knocked down was dominating the bout prior to the knockdown or standing 8 count, he will still NOT receive a score of 10. However, he/she "MAY" not receive an 8 either. If the judge feels the fighter who was knocked down was dominating "THE ENTIRE BOUT" other than the "1" knockdown, the judge has the "CHOICE" to score it a 10-9 round rather than a 10-8 round.
   • SCORING A ROUND WITH MULTIPLE KNOCKDOWNS OR 8 COUNTS.
     • If BOTH fighters score standing 8 counts or knockdowns, in the judges mind, the round score goes back to being even. NO Fighter will be given an 8 in the round if there are no other standing 8 counts or knockdowns in the round..
     • IN A CLOSE ROUND, if one fighter is given a standing 8 count and the other scores a HARD KNOCKDOWN, the judge may give more credit to the HARD KNOCKDOWN.
     • If one fighter is dominating the round and he forces the referee to give more than 1 standing 8 count on a fighter, the judge shall score the round as follows;
       • 10-8, for 1 standing 8 count or knockdown.
       • 10-7, for 2 standing 8 count or knockdown.
       • If a fighter is ready to be given his/her 3rd standing 8 count, the referee will STOP the bout. The bout is over if 3 knockdowns or 3 standing 8 counts occur due to fighter dominance.
     • Sweeps are not counted as knockdowns and in scoring, shall not be given the same evaluation as a knockdown. An effective sweep would be the same as an effective strike.
3. CLOSE ROUNDS
   • Although we would rather see a scored winner of a round, "IF" a judge TRULY feels both fighters appear to have evenly matched skill we would rather see a judge score the bout even at 10-10 instead of simply "Picking" a winner like the toss of a coin.
   • As noted above, ONE good hard punch or a short flurry does not win a round! unless the punch or flurry resulted in the referee administering a standing 8 count or counting over a fighter that was knocked down or the bout was even and in the end, one fighter landed one or several decisive blows that separated his "Dominance" of the round from the other fighter.
   • If both fighters seemed close, the fighter with the better KICKING skill should be awarded 10 and the other fighter 9. Remember, this is KICKboxing. Here is a good Article on Judging: CLICK HERE!
4. POINT DEDUCTIONS
   • The REFEREE or the IKF Ringside Representative are the ONLY Officials with the authority to give a point deduction to a fighter. In doing so the Referee will stop the bout, hold the fighters wrist/hand who will be given the deduction, face each judge and announce his point deduction(s).
   • In deducting points, each judge will score the round as they saw it. AFTER they score the round, THEN they will deduct the point from the fighter.
   • Knockdowns, standing 8 counts, these ARE NOT POINT DEDUCTIONS. They are scored techniques as noted above in SCORING.
   • Examples of point deductions "That MAY be given by the referee" are;
     • Fouls: One fighter hits the other with an illegal blow or to an illegal target area.
   • SOME point deductions may be made by the referee without holding the fighters wrist/hand. If so, he will come to each judge to inform them personally of the point deduction as well as each fighters corner. Here are some examples of such;
     • In a Full Contact Rules Bout, the first round in which a fighter does not kick the required minimum number of kicks (Am-6, Pros-8) , the referee will announce to each judge that there is a -1- point deduction to the fighter who did not meet their minimum kick requirement.
     • If the ringside representative or the referee sees the fighters cornermen/women not following the IKF Cornerman/women rules and regulations, the fighter could be deducted 1 or more points or even be disqualified from the bout. Click for these rules and regulations for cornermen
5. SCORE EXAMPLES
   • 10-10 round, indicates that according to the judge, BOTH fighters showed even or equal skill and no clear winner could be determined by the judge.
   • 10-9 round, indicates one fighter was somewhat more effective than the other or even dominated the round without a knockdown or standing 8 count. A 10-9 could also be given in a round where the dominating fighter was knocked down once in the round.
   • 10-8 round indicates one fighter was in constant control and clearly out fought his opponent as far as technique within the ring "AND" scored a standing 8 count or a knockdown on his/her opponent. The 10 score would be given to the fighter who forced the knockdown or a standing 8 count.
   • 10-7 round indicates total domination by one fighter in all aspects to the point that the referee nearly stopped the fight. There should have been at least 2 standing 8 counts and or 2 clear knockdowns.
   • 9-9 score indicates one or both fighters scored 10, but a point deduction brought the score down to 9-9. Again, these are just some EXAMPLES. There are many other possibilities in final scoring, especially when point deduction, standing 8 counts and knockdowns all intermix together in a single round.

BOUT DECISION ANNOUNCEMENTS

1. NO CONTEST: When a no fault foul happens in the first round and 1 or both cannot continue.
2. WINNER, LOSER: Unanimous Decision, Majority Decision or Split Decision.
3. DRAW: When all 3 score cards show equal points to each fighter.
4. MAJORITY DRAW: When 2 out of the 3 judges score equal amount of points to both fighters.
5. UNANIMOUS DECISION: When all 3 judges score the same winner.
6. SPLIT DECISION: When 2 judges score one fighter a winner and the third judge scores the other fighter a winner.
7. MAJORITY DECISION: When 2 judges score one fighter a winner and the third judge scores both fighters EVEN, as a draw.
8. TECHNICAL WIN (TW): TECHNICAL LOSE (TL), TECHNICAL DRAW: Usually resulting from a Foul. The outcome of this event was judged by the scorecards of the previous rounds.
9. TECHNICAL FORFEIT, TECHNICAL WIN: Usually from a pre-event disqualification or from invalid fight experience: not giving actual experience to the matchmaker prior to the event.)
10. TECHNICAL KNOCKOUT: A fighter has been stopped from fighting from taking too many blows or maybe knocked down 3 times in one round, but can still stand or is not knocked "OUT". This is a fighter who is obviously hurt and the referee feels he/she cannot continue any longer. Any fighter who loses their bout by TECHNICAL KNOCKOUT will be suspended from Fighting for 45 days.
    • If the TKO (TECHNICAL KNOCKOUT) stop was not due to a headblow the fighter, trainer and or manager may make a request in Writting to the IKF Headquarters for a "Suspension Waiver". Examples of bouts that end with a TKO decision that "Could" be accepted for "Suspension Waiver". are:
      • A stop from an injury, except broken bones. (EX: Pulled muscle, twisted ankle etc.)
      • Stop from a body blow that did not do any internal damage or break any bones.
      • Fighter was simply too tired to continue. To read more detail about the suspension rules and regulations Click HERE.
11. KNOCKOUT: A fighter shall be awarded a knockout if he knocks his opponent to the ring floor and the opponent is OUT COLD by the count of 10. In the IKF, a "KNOCKOUT" indicates that a fighter was "OUT COLD" after a strike. Any fighter who loses their bout by KO, or KNOCKOUT will be suspended from Fighting for 45 days. It is the responsibility of the fighter, trainer and manager to respect and abide by this rule for the personal safety of their own fighter.
    • Their are no "Suspension Waivers" allowed for true KNOCKOUT loses. This is for the protection of the fighters. To read more detail about the suspension rules and regulations Click HERE.
12. DISQUALIFICATION: Usually the decision after an excessive Foul (or 1 harsh Foul.). The IKF Referee and IKF Ringside Representative shall make such a decision.
    • FOR EXAMPLE: If a fighter is injured from a foul, and the fight continues, but is later stopped because of additional injury to the fouled area, the score cards will be tallied. If the fighter fouling is ahead on the score cards a TECHNICAL DRAW will be the result of the fight. If the fighter not fouling is ahead, he will be awarded a TW (Technical Win) and the fighter fouling will be awarded a TL (Technical Los) or DISQUALIFICATION.

OVERRULING A BOUT DECISION

The IKF reserves the right to over-rule any of these decisions based on facts and circumstances related to the situation. The IKF will make public their decision within 10 days after the scheduled event. For Bout Protests Info, CLICK HERE.

IKF OFFICIALS - GUIDELINES

• All IKF Event officials shall be employed by the promoter and be approved by the IKF Event Representative ONLY.
• Each official must know all rules and regulations for an IKF kickboxing event. To find properly qualified officials, contact the local athletic commission or work with the IKF directly to select the best qualified officials for each position.
• The IKF reserves all rights to deny or appoint all necessary officials if the promoter's selections do not meet the required qualifications of the IKF.
• Any official is found under the influence of ANY drug or alcohol immediately prior to or during the event shall be fined by the IKF $500.00 and placed on a suspension determined by the IKF.
• Any official at an IKF event shall give permission to the IKF for drug testing before or after any bout, amateur or pro and especially if the bout is a title match. If any official is found under the influence of ANY drug, the official shall be fined by the IKF $500.00 and placed on a suspension determined by the IKF.
• ALL officials must be pre-approved and licensed by the IKF "UNLESS" other IKF approved officials in the Promoters area are available for the event.