WAKO Full-Contact
The amateur ring discipline that mirrors American full-contact: everything above the waist, a required kick count, no legs and no clinch.
Origin
WAKO’s codification of the American full-contact ruleset for international amateur competition.
WAKO full-contact is the amateur world's version of the PKA code. Fighters compete in a ring with full power permitted, but the targets stop at the waist — no leg kicks — and knees, elbows and clinching are all out. As in the American professional rules, a minimum number of kicks per round is required, which stops the bout drifting into pure boxing.
For a competitor, the ruleset produces a distinctive shape: an upright, mobile stance with the lead leg unthreatened, and a heavy reliance on the round kick to the body and head as the scoring counterweight to the hands. Defensive footwork matters more than checking, because there is nothing to check.
It remains one of WAKO's core championship disciplines and is the route by which many European amateurs first fight at full power, before choosing whether to move across to low-kick or K-1 rules.
Legal
- Full-power punches above the waist
- Full-power kicks above the waist
- Foot sweeps in some variants
Illegal
- All strikes below the waist
- Knees and elbows
- Clinching, holding and throws
What sets it apart
- Full power, but nothing below the waist
- A required kick count per round, inherited from the PKA rules
- Round kicks to body and head carry the scoring load
Scoring
- System
- 10-point must
- Rounds
- 3 (more at senior international level)
- Round length
- 2 minutes
- Extension rounds
- An extra round settles a draw at some championships.
Judging criteria
- 1Knockdowns
- 2Clean, effective striking above the waist
- 3Meeting the required kick count per round
- 4Aggression and ring generalship