Ultra White Collar Boxing, or UWCB for short, is a white collar boxing event held at multiple cities around the UK. As long as you have no boxing experience and are over 18, you are welcome to join. The events have a strict black tie dress code and are a great night out for all your family and friends. Read on to find out how the event operates, how the UWCB tickets work and how to win your UWCB fight.

How To Join

I signed up using the UWCB website. Just choose your location from one of over 100 in the UK and you’re in. It is completely free, the only stipulation is that you must sell 20 tickets and raise at least £50 for Cancer Research UK. This is easily achievable through friends and family. Once joined, you are added to a Facebook group and a texting list so that your organiser can contact you, you choose a boxing name, and the training begins.

My boxing name was “The Weasel” in 2013 (an old nickname from my brother) and “El Tolelo” in 2017, which is a mix of my nephews and nieces names and also happens to sound like a Mexican boxer!

How To Win

The training I received was fantastic. A mixture of both fitness and technique will ensure you learn to box in no time. It is only 8 weeks, though while you are training it feels like 8 years, and once you’ve finished it feels like it was 8 minutes! In Derby, where I took part, participants are trained by Clifton Mitchell, who trained the infamous Tyson Fury.

There are two keys to winning at an UWCB event. Firstly, you win by listening to the trainers; it’s almost as simple as that. They will tell you to do extra fitness sessions between your boxing lessons with them. Those sessions for extra fitness are vital, as you will see if you watch most white collar boxing events that boxers get tired after just one round!

Besides fitness, the othey key is your mentality. I took part in 2013 and 2017. In 2013 I was not fit enough nor was I mentally prepared, and I lost on points. As soon as the bell went I felt like I had weights in my gloves and I couldn’t wait to hear the final bell.

In 2017 however, I was prepared in my body and mind, which ultimately meant I won the fight. In the video below you can see me pacing up and down before the fight started, looking down. I was telling myself “relax and breathe”, the best advice I’ve ever had. It worked and I felt the opposite to how I had felt in 2013, I felt unstoppable, determined and like I could have done 12 rounds instead of 3.

How To Dress

The event is fully black tie (except boxers) and you should get there early if you want to ensure you see the fights you want to see. Men must wear trousers, shirts, shoes and tie minimum. Ladies wear dress or blouses with suit bottoms. No trainers, caps or hoods allowed.

UWCB Tickets

UWCB tickets are either £20 each for a single person standing, or £35 per person (minimum of 10) for a table. The seated option is a better view as it’s closer to the ring and features waiters and waitresses giving table service for drinks, but in my experience both are fine.

UWCB Event

The UWCB event is preceeded by a weigh in, usually at a local pub or nightclub. The weights aren’t all that important as you are matched with somebody based on ability too, but the weigh in is a fun event and allows you to square up to your opponent, possibly for the first time.

On fight night, the event usually starts around 5pm and will last most of the evening. you are not told what time you are on until the night, to ensure the crowd turns up on time. Everyone is cheered, winners, losers, referees, the lot. It’s a good atmosphere and great fun for everyone involved, and a lot of money is raised for charity in the process.

UWCB Overall

You will thank yourself for doing it. You will end up fitter than you’ve ever been. You will learn to box. You will raise money for a cancer charity. Your friends and family will admire you for being so courageous, and they get a great night out at the same time!

Would you box for charity? Have any questions about boxing or UWCB? Leave a comment…