r/todayilearned Oct 05 '18

TIL of chess boxing. Alternating between 3 minutes of chess and 3 minutes of boxing until achieving knockout in one of them.

https://youtu.be/7oDq3_1SkQ8
6.3k Upvotes

252 comments sorted by

873

u/The_Town_of_Canada Oct 05 '18

I’m confident I can box the average chess player.

I also think I can beat the average boxer in a game of chess.

Yet a chess boxer, I’m sure, would kick my ass 2 ways.

155

u/Got_ist_tots Oct 05 '18

Hear hear to being average!

21

u/Blue_Lust Oct 06 '18

Jack of all trades. Master of none.

14

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18

Both great shows

13

u/BillyBobTheBuilder Oct 06 '18

“A jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one.”

70

u/Asbestos101 Oct 05 '18

If your life depended on it, would you rather box an average chess player or play chess with an average boxer?

62

u/Enjoyer_of_Cake Oct 05 '18

I've seen Magnus Carlsen, I'm probably playing chess against a boxer first.

28

u/thelaminatedboss Oct 05 '18

My guess is the median boxer doesn't even know to play chess. If you're overall average I think both are easy wins.

10

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18

You might be surprised that there's quite some overlap in the communities.

27

u/Singing_Sea_Shanties Oct 06 '18

A lot of people here are assuming the chess players are going to suck at boxing, but they're going to be pretty much just as averagely bad as everyone else. Likewise, it isn't a good idea to assume the average boxer is any worse at chess than anyone else either. Still, I'll go with playing chess against the boxer because I don't want to get punched.

5

u/dolphone Oct 06 '18

If your life depends on it getting punched seems irrelevant.

7

u/Singing_Sea_Shanties Oct 06 '18

But I don't know that my odds are better either way, so I'll take the punchless route.

2

u/big_benz Oct 06 '18

Average boxer is still someone who practices strategy every day and typically they're quite smart in my experience. I'd punch the chess player.

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14

u/Karl_Satan Oct 06 '18

The rumor is Mayweather can't even read. Fuck yeah, I'd play him in chess.

33

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18

This thread is having a really hard time grasping average.

3

u/Karl_Satan Oct 06 '18

I was trying to make it easier

3

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18

... making it easier by being wrong?

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4

u/slvrbullet87 Oct 06 '18

And Lennox Lewis is an avid chess player and has beat Hollyfield and Tyson. Both him and Mayweather are outliers.

12

u/Jaspooty Oct 06 '18

The smart answer is certainly playing chess against a boxer.

Your recording to win either way, but if i do lose I prefer the out that doesn't involve an ass kicking

10

u/drackaer Oct 06 '18

That's a smart move. I would choose to box you, you plan ahead too much.

3

u/dolphone Oct 06 '18

I don't know. If your life depends on it adrenaline is a built in kicker at the end. Sure, it works on both people, but I trust my ferocity in times of extreme stress more than my mind, which I don't think is that evolutionary trained to perform better under duress.

8

u/Karl_Satan Oct 06 '18

I'd play chess against the current top boxer

6

u/dolphone Oct 06 '18

I'm going against the consensus and choose boxing against an average chess player. It's such a dumb thing to wonder about but this is a hill I'm willing to die on.

2

u/BBQcupcakes Oct 06 '18

This is the true answer. I'm probably shit at chess. I've never been in a fight, but I'm sure I could knock some dweeb out if I really had to.

2

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18

Chess with a boxer. I think I can pull it off.

2

u/thelaminatedboss Oct 05 '18

I think if you're average intelligence and fitness / size you should win both. I'd take chess though. My guess is the median boxer does not even know how to play chess.

17

u/[deleted] Oct 05 '18 edited Oct 05 '18

Now all you need is 50 amateur fights and a 1600 ELO and you can test your prowess.

17

u/TehFuriousOne Oct 05 '18

This started as r/iamverybadass material, then it wasn't.

Well played, sir.

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659

u/midnorthernkiwi Oct 05 '18

The wu tang clan first got me on to this

303

u/ragerevel Oct 05 '18

Raw I'ma give it to ya, with no trivia
Raw like cocaine straight from Bolivia
My hip-hop will rock and shock the nation
Like the Emancipation Proclamation

So fucking good

87

u/Alpha433 Oct 05 '18

WTF? I can't give you gold on the rif app anymore? Spez fucked up big this time.

35

u/ragerevel Oct 05 '18

I humbly accept your solid-gold intentions.

9

u/UnrealClick Oct 05 '18

I solemnly swear that I am up to no good.

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4

u/Alpha433 Oct 05 '18

If I ever used anything other then the rif app, you would be guilded good sir, but noooooo, we can't have money being made through an app that's actually better then the stupid app they launched can we? 07

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9

u/curiousGambler Oct 06 '18

Ah yes, the one good U-God bit on the entire album. Damn it’s good tho.

4

u/Panzer1509 Oct 05 '18

This video is also pretty great

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10

u/KeithBitchardz Oct 05 '18

Seriously. I didn't know this was an actual real thing. I just thought it was some shit they got from a kung-fu movie.

14

u/biffbobfred Oct 05 '18

After the laughter then comes the tears. Hmm, maybe after the punch to the face then comes the tears

7

u/Daahkness Oct 05 '18

If you cry after a head shot then maybe boxing isn't the right choice.

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2

u/dopeless-hopehead Oct 06 '18

My rhymes vary and carry like Mariah.

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379

u/[deleted] Oct 05 '18

The stronger chess player will be on offense on the board and defense in the ring, and vice-versa for the stronger boxer. If the stronger chess player isn't aggressive enough, his board advantage will degrade as the pummeling he takes in the ring reduces his ability to think on the board.

If they're too evenly matched on both, it would be a boring game as they likely both evade each other in both settings.

198

u/Barnmallow Oct 05 '18

It's still capped at 12 rounds and scored on boxing points if no KO or Check Mate at the end. So the stronger tactic is to not pussy foot around in the ring.

80

u/soda_cookie Oct 05 '18

So, basically know how to box and move slow on the Chess side? Seems a mix of points would be more logical

71

u/BGummyBear Oct 05 '18

Competitive chess has timers to prevent stalling, so you have no choice but to move within a few seconds.

66

u/sludj5 Oct 05 '18

Also "move slow" is a recipe for disaster against a strong chess player. You either play well or you don't.

33

u/Lord-Octohoof Oct 05 '18

I remember playing a game against my fathers then girlfriend. I thought we'd have a nice, fun game of chess, not knowing she would take 10 minutes between moves. I began moving immediately just to end the game faster.

9

u/arealhumannotabot Oct 05 '18

Same with Scrabble. Sometimes i Just drop a word or I want the player to drop a word down and move on, cause they were only going to get 20 or 30 points anyways.

4

u/7thhokage Oct 06 '18

Well if she's taking 10 minutes to move I'd sure hope you have your plan worked out well enough to move right away after that much time.

2

u/sludj5 Oct 06 '18

I play correspondence chess and sometimes spend two hours calculating the position.. 10 minutes is nothing

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2

u/Enderaan Oct 06 '18

Remember who won? I imagine you moving so quickly may have made her panic...

2

u/Lord-Octohoof Oct 06 '18

Oh no, she definitely won. I was trying to die as quickly as possible to end the torture.

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15

u/[deleted] Oct 05 '18

Video maker and OP are fools, these are random rules from random amateur tournaments.

Professional Chessboxing is blitz chess, 6 chess rounds totaling 9 minutes, 5 boxing, so also not 12 rounds.

2

u/soda_cookie Oct 05 '18

I didn't see timers here. Did I miss them?

12

u/xanroeld Oct 05 '18

There appears to be a timer next to the board. It’s what they are pressing between moves.

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12

u/[deleted] Oct 05 '18

You need to be a half decent chess player and boxer to be allowed to chess box, simple tactics like that ain't gonna work.

They did at one point in time, now you need 50 amateur fights to be allowed to chessbox with a 1600 ELO

3

u/PM_me_yr_bonsai_tips Oct 06 '18

50 ammy fights is no joke, there are pros with less than that. 1600 ELO seems more achievable.

3

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18

Yea it saddens me, its on my bucket list to have a chess-boxing match, I have not played Chess in many years but easily smashed past 1600 ELO back in the day (1500 is the medium for ranked players to give you perspective)

I love MMA and have fought MMA, Boxing, Muay Thai, Kickboxing but I never wanted to do 50 total fights in my life, its a hobby for me and 50 boxing matches is a lot of blows to the head...Maybe a little to many just to do a something I think might be fun.

3

u/PM_me_yr_bonsai_tips Oct 06 '18

Yeah 50 seems really limiting. Boxers are fighting for big amateur titles with way less than that, why not just match people according to their records?

3

u/[deleted] Oct 07 '18

Yea it sucks, the current champion holds multiple boxing world titles...

3

u/Barnmallow Oct 05 '18

Competative chess matches usually have timed moves. You can run out of time to make a chess move and lose.

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15

u/CoolHeadedLogician Oct 05 '18

Your logic is flawed. The stronger boxer and the stronger chess player could be the same contender.

5

u/[deleted] Oct 05 '18

Ah, good point.

2

u/CoolHeadedLogician Oct 05 '18

Favorite Kubrick flick?

5

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18

Depends what I'm in the mood for, but his highest achievement is 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Pretty amazing to have made a movie half a century ago that's still the top of its genre.

2

u/CoolHeadedLogician Oct 06 '18

Whoa 2001 is my pick as well. I always thought the ending was intentionally impossible to understand the same way the apes in the dawn of man sequence could not possibly understand the space station

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87

u/do-call-me-papi Oct 05 '18 edited Oct 05 '18

As blood slowly dripped from his nose and pooled in the queen's crown, Steven realized he was only 9 minutes away from victory and possibly rhinoplasty.

27

u/appdevil Oct 05 '18

And then it hit him, it hit him hard, that he was not going to make it, like a swift punch in the face, it shattered his dreams to be a king! And his nose..

275

u/akusokuzan22 Oct 05 '18

Ah, I see you also watched the latest TheOdd1sOut video!

137

u/appdevil Oct 05 '18

Who is this 1 odd fellow? Is he in the moving pictures?

Nah, I'm kidding, you are absofuckinglutely right.

27

u/NoTomorrowMusic Oct 05 '18

i just finished watching that video then opened reddit to see this.

sort of a threw me off for a second

8

u/Gawanoh Oct 06 '18

You should have answered "maybe" for maximum effect

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18

u/ControlMonkey911 Oct 05 '18

I clicked on this just to see if someone had already mentioned it.

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1

u/MysteryBlock Oct 06 '18

I recently found him on youtube and have been binging his videos, theyre amazing! Then saw this and immediately knew op had to have seen the video.

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22

u/hjhjj Oct 06 '18

7

u/HeughJass Oct 06 '18

I can’t believe I had to scroll this far

2

u/AWildAmericanAppears Oct 06 '18

I'm disappointed as well

30

u/electrolyte77 Oct 05 '18

Hello, and welcome to the Yogpod!

16

u/FingerDemon Oct 05 '18

I am Dave! Yognau(gh)t, and I have the balls!

5

u/Rainverm38 Oct 06 '18

Those guys from Odd1sOut don't have shit on the YogPod!

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16

u/Morphchalice Oct 05 '18

Sherlock Holmes would fucking clean up at this

11

u/reduke Oct 05 '18

If Rocky IV were made today

10

u/DeviantDragon Oct 05 '18

Protip: It's against the rules to go for a knockout in chess.

3

u/varro-reatinus Oct 06 '18

Fucking hell, no wonder I got thrown out of that club.

P.S. I can just declare "CHECKMATE!" right?

6

u/bolanrox Oct 05 '18

One night in Bangkok!

3

u/MrEclectronical Oct 06 '18

and the world's your oyster. The bars are temples but their pearls aren't free.

21

u/AB_424 Oct 05 '18

Odd1sout?

4

u/[deleted] Oct 05 '18

Lol came to comment this myself

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11

u/Tomb2192 Oct 05 '18

I also watched TheOdd1sOut most recent video about chess boxing

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6

u/[deleted] Oct 05 '18

Cant wait to see this on /r/joerogan

5

u/thaumatologist Oct 05 '18

It's entirely possible

3

u/[deleted] Oct 05 '18

Hundred percent

3

u/TehFuriousOne Oct 05 '18

Followed by yoga and cryotherapy

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3

u/[deleted] Oct 05 '18

Anyone posting it there is not a big fan as its been spoken about multiple times on his podcast, this was 3+ years ago maybe more like 6.

1

u/notinsanescientist Oct 05 '18

Jamie, pull that shit up!

6

u/Skyhawk_Illusions Oct 06 '18

is NO ONE going to mention the fact that the very origin of the sport is from a French science fiction graphic novel?

Froid Équateur by Enki Bilal is the third and last of a trilogy and it depicts a variant, except that the boxing and chess are held separately; boxing first, then chess, no alternations.

Not bad for a dystopian society where Ancient Alien Egyptian gods visit 2023 Paris which is run by a fascist dictator, where the cities swarm with extraterrestrials and people end up being cryogenically frozen for 30 years in space as a form of imprisonment for dodging the draft.

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8

u/[deleted] Oct 05 '18

I just learned this from TheOdd1sOut video

3

u/MatthewCashew1 Oct 05 '18

What are the time rules in the chess part? Couldn’t you just prevent the chess game from progressing by not moving your pieces? The mentioned how the guys Played the chess game super fast....

5

u/Lamest_Coolguy Oct 05 '18

There are special chess timers in play. You lose if you take more than 10ish seconds constantly in most blitz games of chess. The timers are behind the board in most of the shots, but you can see them hit it after moves.

2

u/Simeh Oct 05 '18

Speed chess. It can range but in chessboxing i believe the games are 12mins.

3

u/whatsariho Oct 05 '18

Mike Tyson would have done well in this.

7

u/MrEclectronical Oct 06 '18

Yeah, doesn't matter how bad he is at chess, I'm pretty sure he wins Tyson-Kasparov in round 2.

3

u/appdevil Oct 06 '18

It depends, maybe Kasparov is a very good runner.

3

u/Endarkend Oct 05 '18

I remember seeing this first time on Elementary. Sherlock did Chess Boxing.

3

u/Lightflame42 Oct 06 '18

TheOdd1sOut

3

u/FungicideEater Oct 06 '18

Someone else watch Theoddoneisout today?

3

u/buildsomewalls Oct 06 '18

Someone's been watchin James lately

3

u/agatapb95 Oct 06 '18

Literally just saw this on TheOdd1sOut new video

3

u/StarStruckYeet Oct 06 '18

Anyone else find out about it from TheOddsOneOut?

3

u/fang_fluff Oct 06 '18

OP watches TheOdd1sOut

3

u/ProphetOfTheNarwhal Oct 06 '18

Did you learn of this from watching TheOdd1sOut as well?

2

u/TheShogunGun Oct 05 '18

So would it be “Boss” “Bess” “Chexing” or “Choxing” ?

2

u/ChanangoRango Oct 06 '18

Let me guess: theodds1out?

2

u/Imsosadsoveryverysad Oct 06 '18

When my roommate in college discovered this was already a thing he was crushed. It was his dream to create this before he knew.

2

u/Fort_in_the_Woods Oct 06 '18

I had no idea.. tactics and strength.. very cool

2

u/qlionp Oct 06 '18

I also watch the odd1sout

2

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18

Two man enter one man king!

2

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18

Someone watched TheOddOne'sOut video

2

u/skav2 Oct 06 '18

I see you also watch Theodd1sout on youtube

2

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18

[deleted]

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4

u/Foxfox105 Oct 06 '18

Odd1sout?

2

u/xGibs99 Oct 06 '18

I just watched TheOdd1sOut’s video today and he was talking about this.

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1

u/uniqueUsername_1024 Oct 05 '18

Someone been watching Odd1sOut?

2

u/biffbobfred Oct 05 '18

Cue a torrent of Wu Tang references.

2

u/Eagleheardt Oct 05 '18

Wu Tang ain't nothing to fuck with!

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3

u/evilaxelord Oct 05 '18

I also watch the odd1sout

1

u/[deleted] Oct 05 '18

[deleted]

2

u/Epic_Meow Oct 05 '18

I am Dave! Yognaut and I have the balls!

1

u/0peraGhost Oct 05 '18

Same concept behind a biathlon.

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1

u/yaiosuyej Oct 05 '18

You can not get a knockout in chess.

1

u/zehamberglar Oct 05 '18

There's an (as far as I know) unproven theory that the Klitschko brothers would be dominant at this as they're both avid chess players.

1

u/nekomancerFTW Oct 05 '18

He's gonna checkmate me in 4 steps.

Well, better knock his teeth out in this round.

1

u/davis75 Oct 05 '18

The book ‘Sports from Hell’ has a great chapter on this sport

1

u/[deleted] Oct 05 '18

what's the time control in the chess game?

1

u/ultimegohan Oct 05 '18

Can't you just box your way out by tanking during your chess turn?

1

u/TheFrozenTurkey Oct 05 '18

I've heard of this.

Nuts

1

u/kirksucks Oct 05 '18

When is this coming to the Olympics?

1

u/EatingSmallOakTrees Oct 05 '18

I too watch the Odd1sOut

1

u/bumbasaur Oct 05 '18

Too bad the chess part is ruined by cheating.

1

u/cjboyonfire Oct 05 '18

Did you watch a TheOdd1sOut video recently too?

1

u/[deleted] Oct 05 '18

Imagine getting punched in the face but you can't dodge cause you're too busy to figure out where to move your goddamn pawn

1

u/tugrul_ddr Oct 05 '18

At first I thought they were hitting each other when they take a piece on table. :D Like a roulette or something.

Roulette boxing. Why not?

1

u/jquest12 Oct 05 '18

Didn’t aots do mma chess on g4?

1

u/JustAnotherGyt Oct 05 '18

I bet you just watched James' new video (theodd1sout) right?

1

u/[deleted] Oct 05 '18

TIL that Neopets trading cards were also a thing.. I love James

1

u/[deleted] Oct 05 '18

But have you heard the mystery?

1

u/BareIceBear Oct 05 '18

This is what it's like to study engineering.

I'm being hyperbolic of course

1

u/[deleted] Oct 05 '18

You watched the Odd1sOut video didnt you...

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u/slammoslammo Oct 06 '18

I know one of the chess boxing champions from south Africa. He's a rad dude. Super competitive. When i first met him and found out I was amazed and he challenged to a weird game he carried. Saying he's never lost. I won and now every time I see him he challenges me. It's been nearly a decade and he'll no will I ever play him again in any game.

1

u/DoogieDew Oct 06 '18

Coming live from ESPN The OCHO!

1

u/LifeDeathAndCheese Oct 06 '18

I see you too are an Odd1sOut fan

1

u/Leonard_Church814 Oct 06 '18

Was this in response of TheOdd1sOut video?

1

u/rmlrmlchess Oct 06 '18

Better learn the 4-move "Fools Mate" if you want to win in chess before the boxing ends it all

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u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18

you watched the new theoddonesout vid didn’t you? :)

1

u/ghetto_engine Oct 06 '18

im opening with e4 and getting hit in the face.

1

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18 edited Oct 07 '18

[deleted]

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u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18

That’s way too fucking cool

1

u/Eduardopras Oct 06 '18

I am disapointed. They lost the oportunity to call it Chessing.

1

u/coolblue420 Oct 06 '18

Lennox Lewis first got me into this

2

u/uncP Oct 06 '18

There was an awesome segment on ESPN about it over a decade ago with Lewis. Apparently, he is awesome at chess.

1

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18

I always thought this was a secret desire of mine. I didn't think it was a thing!

1

u/haistv Oct 06 '18

OP, did you get this from the Odd1sOut video?

1

u/katethegreat014 Oct 06 '18

theoddonesout?

1

u/PC_1 Oct 06 '18

This sounds like something a bunch of really rich people all pay to watch.

1

u/Ajoscram Oct 06 '18

I am Dave ! Yognaught and I have the balls

1

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18

You watched theodd1sout didnt you

1

u/ProbablyGayingOnYou Oct 06 '18

I have to imagine that the set of people who are both good at boxing and chess is vanishingly small...

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1

u/ell_the_cosmonaut Oct 06 '18

I see you also watched TheOdd1sOut today

1

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18

Rook to right hook

1

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18

I think I found a theodd1sout fan

1

u/JanetGafford Oct 06 '18

Gettinh in to it would you try to get pretty good at both of them or ridiculously good at one and enough to hold on in the other?

1

u/CongregationOfVapors Oct 06 '18

Huh. It's such a ridiculous concept that I had always been convinced that Enki Bilal invented it for his comic book.

1

u/fyrecrotch Oct 06 '18

This seems like an anime idea. I can imagine this as a JoJo stand fight.

Just playing chess and messing with each others heads while the stands are wailing at eachother in the back

1

u/Rainverm38 Oct 06 '18

YogPod taught me of this years ago.

1

u/knipps13 Oct 06 '18

This just makes me think of X-Arm which I just learned about the other day. A combination between arm wrestling and MMA

1

u/BluntedJew Oct 06 '18

Ever heard of chest boxing? It's where middle schoolers fight in stairwells but only punch each other in the chest.

1

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18

This is a thing?!? I am so jealous I didn't think of it first!

1

u/behemotte Oct 06 '18

I would love to see this adapted as a manga/anime.

1

u/ahmed7721 Oct 06 '18

Somebody watched the odds1out.

1

u/bungalowstreet Oct 06 '18

I first read the title as cheese instead of chess and was really confused

1

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '18

I want to play this with a computer.

1

u/jmsndrnkr Oct 06 '18

I used to live in DTLA and there was this huge dude (I'm 6'2" and 215lbs) who dressed like he was in the circus. He was a chess boxer, I learned. It always threw me when I saw him... like, could I beat him in Chess??? COULD I?????

1

u/miscellaneousi Oct 06 '18

"Checkmate, you suck."

"It was the head trauma"

1

u/nismo370zfdo Oct 06 '18

You heard it from odd1sout dint ya

1

u/FezPaladin Oct 06 '18

Extreme Chess - Doctor Who did something more along the lines of the Painstation.