Rules & Regulations of the State of Tennessee
Title 0780 - Commerce and Insurance
Subtitle 0780-05 - Division of Regulatory Boards
Chapter 0780-05-01 - Professional Boxing
Section 0780-05-01-.19 - KNOCKDOWN AND KNOCKOUT

(1) A contestant shall be deemed "down" when:

(2) When a contestant is knocked down, the timekeeper shall immediately rise and announce the elapsed seconds; and the referee shall promptly order the opponent to retire to the farthest neutral corner. The referee shall then return to the fallen contestant and audibly announce the count as he motions with his right arm downward indicating the end of each second. Should the opponent fail to remain in the neutral corner farthest for the boxer who is down, the referee shall cease counting until he has returned to it, and then continue the count from the point at which it was interrupted.

(3) A contestant who is knocked down must take a count of 8 whether or not he has regained his feet before the count has been reached. If when the count of 8 is reached the contestant is on his feet, the referee shall wipe any accumulated resin from his gloves, and may examine him sufficiently to assure himself that the contestant is physically fit and mentally alert enough to continue. If so assured, the referee shall without loss of time order the contestants to resume boxing.

(4) If the contestant taking the count is still down when the referee calls the count of "TEN", the referee shall wave both arms, indicating that the contestant has been knocked out. When a round other than a final round shall terminate while the referee is administering the count to a contestant who has been knocked down, the count shall be continued. The timekeeper shall not ring the bell until and unless such contestant rises before the count of 10 and the referee orders him to resume boxing. If the fallen contestant shall fail to rise before the count of 10, he shall be declared the loser by knockout in the round just concluded.

(5) Should a boxer slip, fall down, or be pushed down, he shall be ordered to his feet immediately. Failure to rise may subject him to disqualification.

(6) A contestant who has fallen through the ropes and out of the platform ring as a result of a legal blow during the contest may not be helped by anyone, and the referee shall start the count, which in this special case will be twenty (20) seconds. Should the contestant fail to re-enter the ring before the count of twenty (20) seconds, the referee shall wave both arms to indicate that he has been knocked out and shall raise the hand of the opponent as the winner.

(7) If a contestant is knocked down three times in a round, he shall be declared the loser by knockout.

(8) When a boxer has been knocked out, none of his seconds shall touch him until the attending physician enters the ring and personally attends the fallen boxer, and issues such instructions as he deems appropriate to the boxer's seconds.