- The Battle. The math battle is a debate-style competition between two teams. Each team of participants will be given a problem set to work on. Four of those problems will be presented to a panel of judges which will award points based on the correctness and clarity of the presentations.
- Teams and Captains. Participants will be divided into two teams. Team captains will be chosen.
- Problem Set. The teams will work on a problem set for about an hour. For each problem, teams should not only work out a solution but also prepare a presentation of the (possibly partial) solution. Each team member may present or rebut at most one problem.
- Captains Contest. Before the math battle begins, a captains contest decides which team will go first. The team captains are given a short math problem to solve. The first captain to solve the problem correctly has a choice of issuing a challenge to the other team or receiving a challenge from the other team.
- Challenge and Presentation. The teams will take turns challenging each other. Suppose Team A challenges first. The captain of Team A calls out a problem for Team B to present. A speaker from Team B has up to 6 minutes to present a solution.
- Rebuttal. Team A then selects a challenger to present a rebuttal for up to 6 minutes. This is an opportunity for Team A to correct Team B's solution, improve the presentation, or reveal weak points.
- Response. Team B's speaker has the option of responding to the rebuttal for up to 1 minute.
- Timeouts. During a presentation or rebuttal a speaker may take one 30-second timeout to confer with teammates. Only the speaker or captain may call a timeout.
- Clarification. The judges may ask clarifying questions of either speaker.
- Scoring. The judges will confer to decide how many points to award each team. A maximum of 12 points will be awarded for each problem: 7 points for correctness and completeness of the solution, 3 points for presentation, plus 2 bonus points for elegance and/or an alternate approach.
- Next Challenge. Team B then challenges Team A, etc. A total of four problems will be presented.
- Winners. To win, a team must receive at least 3 more points than the other team. Otherwise the result is considered a draw. The battle ends on friendly terms.