ABSTRACT
Boxing, far from being an anomaly the persistence of which is hard to explain in contemporary societies, has a great deal to offer in explaining the processes of identification. Boxing and its associated cultural practices are marked by the persistence of collusive masculinities, frequently reproduced in opposition to femininity. The masculinities forged in boxing in training regimes, which are organized around attempts to pre-empt failure, are also the means of accommodating the fear of not succeeding. The collusive networks of masculinity in boxing are also reproduced through routine and iterative practices as well as in dramatic moments. The routine of boxing includes embodied practice in the gym and the routines of following the sport and knowing its histories and culture. Boxing masculinities offer seductively secure, bounded identities and an intimacy of routine masculinity that is at times untroubled by having to engage with femininity.
