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Boxing’s Chaotic Weight Divisions: Part Two of a Two-Part Story
In May of 1987, The Ring magazine, boxing’s premier publication, announced that it would be turning back the clock. In the future, the monthly top-10 ratings would be limited to the eight classic weight divisions. The champions of the “junior” divisions would be rolled into the next highest weight class.
“Our goal,” said The Ring editor Nigel Collins, “is to restore boxing to the way it used to be, when the champ really meant something. The thing is so watered down now that it has become a farce.”
The last straw for the self-styled Bible of boxing was the introduction of the 105-pound weight class earlier that year. The fledgling International Boxing Federation got the ball rolling and the two other relevant organizations, the WBC and WBA, were quick to embrace it. This latest addition to boxing’s taxonomy created a second weight division below the standard flyweight class. Only three measly pounds separated the 105-pound class from the class directly above it.
Making matters more confusing, the three organizations could not agree on what to call the new weight division. The IBF named it mini-flyweight, the WBC called it the strawweight, and the WBA named it the minimumweight division.
The addition of this new weight class was seen as a cash grab, a move to extract more money in sanctioning fees from the sport’s promoters. It was certainly that, but there was more to it. The honchos of the three organizations could see that the Orient was “under-served.” The best fighters in this region of the world, with few exceptions, were “mighty-mites.” When the IBF released its first mini-flyweight top-10 list, only four countries were represented: Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia, and South Korea.
Cruisers
The cruiserweight division was born before the bottom end of the weight spectrum was cluttered with sub-flyweight divisions. The WBC led the way, setting the limit at 190 pounds.
Marvin Camel, who was born on the Flathead Indian Reservation in Montana, had the distinction of being the world’s first cruiserweight champion, but it took him two tries. In December of 1979, Camel’s 15-round fight with Mate Parlov in Yugoslavia ended in a draw. The do-over was held three months later in Las Vegas and Camel copped the vacant belt, winning a unanimous decision.
Camel became a two-time cruiserweight champion when he scored a 5th-round stoppage over Roddy McDonald on McDonald’s turf in Halifax, Nova Scotia, on Dec. 13, 1983, in the first world cruiserweight title fight sanctioned by the infant IBF.
Prior to this, in February of the previous year, the first WBA cruiserweight title fight was held in South Africa. Ossie Ocasio claimed the vacant belt with a 15-round split decision over Robbie Williams. In point of fact, Ocasio actually won the WBA’s junior heavyweight title, but the name never caught on and the WBA eventually fell in line with its rivals and accepted the handle “cruiserweight.”
Super Middles
The idea for a 168-pound weight class had been kicking around for some time before the International Boxing Federation gave it the stamp of approval, taking it out of the hands of fly-by-night organizations.
The IBF, headquartered in New Jersey, was pressured to create the new weight class by the management of Garden State native Bobby Czyz who had outgrown the middleweight division, but the popular Czyz was a spectator when the IBF held its first super middleweight title fight, a match between Murray Sutherland and Ernie Singletary at Atlantic City on March 28, 1984. Sutherland, who was born in Scotland but fought out of Bay City, Michigan, won the vacant belt with a lopsided decision in a dull 15-round fight.
South Korea’s Chong Pal-Park, who dethroned Sutherland but left the IBF, won the first WBA super middleweight title fight with a second-round stoppage of Tijuana’s Jesus Gallardo on Dec. 6, 1987. In November of the following year, the first-ever WBO and WBC super middleweight title fights were staged three days apart in Las Vegas.
On the 4th, at the Hilton, Thomas Hearns became the first WBO 168-pound title-holder when he got off the deck to win a 12-round majority decision over James Kinchen. On the 7th, at Caesars Palace, Sugar Ray Leonard got off the deck to stop Donny Lalonde in the ninth frame. Leonard won two titles that night as Lalonde entered the ring sporting the WBC light heavyweight title, but Sugar Ray never had any intention of defending this belt.
That set up a unification fight between Hearns and Leonard, a rematch of their scintillating welterweight battle, but almost eight years had passed since that famous fight and Leonard-Hearns II, contested at Caesars Palace on June 12, 1989, was a pale imitation of the original even though it was a very close fight that ended in a draw.
All four governing bodies would eventually bump the cruiserweight class up to 200 pounds. The changeover was made in rapid succession, one of the few instances in which the rival organizations operated more or less in concert.
Olympic Boxing
The lords of professional boxing were too smart to tamper with the traditional eight weight classes. The weights have remained unchanged for more than 100 years. At the amateur level, however, there have been frequent shake-ups.
As noted in PART ONE, the 1920 Summer Games were an important development in putting the seal of approval on the eight traditional classes and standardizing the weight attached to each class. This template remained in place until 1948 when there were changes across the board resulting from the decision to express the weights in kilograms rather than pounds. Every weight class was impacted to some degree. To take just one example, the lightweight division went from 135 pounds to 62 kilograms, the rough equivalent of 136.7 pounds.
Four years later, at the 1952 Olympics, two new weight classes were introduced, boosting the number of divisions from “8” to “10.” The new divisions were called light welterweight and light middleweight and the divisions adjacent to them were adjusted so that they wouldn’t rub too close against them.
Another new weight class was introduced in 1968, the light flyweight class with a ceiling of 105.8 pounds (48 kilograms) and in 1984 the number of Olympic weight classes went from “11” to “12” with a super heavyweight class for boxers weighing more than 91 kilograms (200.6 pounds).
The light middleweight division was eliminated in 2004 and the featherweight division was expunged in 2012, bringing the number of Olympic weight classes back to “10.” As was true when a new weight class was added, the elimination of a weight class brought about some adjustments. And it now became necessary to qualify the number by noting that these were men’s classes. The women had crashed the party.
At the 2012 Games, the first for female boxing, and once again in 2016, the ladies were sorted into three divisions: flyweight, lightweight, and middleweight.
At the forthcoming Tokyo Olympiad — pushed back from 2020 by the pandemic — there will be five weight classes for women. A featherweight (125) and a welterweight (152) class has been added. Concordantly, the lightweight division has been redefined, going from 132 to 138 pounds.
As has happened in the realm of sports at America’s colleges and universities, as more opportunities have been provided for women, there’s been some contraction for men. To accommodate the ladies, AIBA, the international governing body of amateur boxing, is doing away with two men’s classes. The light flyweight and bantamweight divisions are biting the dust.
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It seems odd that as amateur boxing is returning to eight weight classes (for males), the pro game is heading in the other direction. The addition of a bridgerweight class will swell the number to 18.
And by the way, The Ring magazine now rates boxers in 12 weight categories. The well-intentioned rollback to the original eight never did take hold.
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The Sweet Science Rankings: Week of May 29th, 2023
In this week’s TSS Rankings, it’s all change at the top of the 126lbs division with Luis Alberto Lopez rocketing to the #1 spot after a brutal dispatch of Michael Conlan; Leigh Wood is right behind him after making it 1-1 with a miserable Mauricio Lara (Mexico) who is likely about to depart for 130lbs after failing to make weight by 4lbs. For the moment he languishes at #5. Chris Billam-Smith makes #3 at 200lbs after ripping victory from fellow Englishman Lawrence Okolie. The hapless Okolie drops to #8. The best performance this weekend though was turned in by New Yorker Oscar Collazo who brutalised the favoured Melvin Jerusalem (Philippines). Collazo rises to three, Jerusalem drops to #8.
Pound-for-Pound
01 – Naoya Inoue
02 – Oleksandr Usyk
03 – Juan Francisco Estrada
04 – Dmitry Bivol
05 – Terence Crawford
06 – Errol Spence Jnr.
07 – Tyson Fury
08 – Saul Alvarez
09 – Artur Beterbiev
10 – Shakur Stevenson
105lbs
1 Knockout CP Freshmart (Thailand)
2 Petchmanee CP Freshmart (Thailand)
3 Oscar Collazo (USA)*
4 Ginjiro Shigeoka (Japan)
5 Wanheng Menayothin (Thailand)
6 Daniel Valladares (Mexico)
7 Yudai Shigeoka (Japan)
8 Melvin Jerusalem (Philippines)
9 Masataka Taniguchi (Japan)
10 Rene Mark Cuarto (Philippines)
108lbs
1 Kenshiro Teraji (Japan)
2 Jonathan Gonzalez (Puerto Rico)
3 Masamichi Yabuki (Japan)
4 Hekkie Budler (South Africa)
5 Sivenathi Nontshinga (South Africa)
6 Elwin Soto (Mexico)
7 Daniel Matellon (Cuba)
8 Reggie Suganob (Philippines)
9 Shokichi Iwata (Japan)
10 Esteban Bermudez (Mexico)
112lbs
1 Sunny Edwards (England)
2 Artem Dalakian (Ukraine)
3 Julio Cesar Martinez (Mexico)
4 Angel Ayala Lardizabal (Mexico)
5 David Jimenez (Costa Rica)
6 Jesse Rodriguez (USA)
7 Ricardo Sandoval (USA)
8 Felix Alvarado (Nicaragua)
9 Seigo Yuri Akui (Japan)
10 Cristofer Rosales (Nicaragua)
115lbs
1 Juan Francisco Estrada (Mexico)
2 Roman Gonzalez (Nicaragua)
3 Jesse Rodriguez (USA)
4 Kazuto Ioka (Japan)
5 Joshua Franco (USA)
6 Junto Nakatani (Japan)
7 Fernando Martinez (Argentina)
8 Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (Thailand)
9 Kosei Tanaka (Japan)
10 Andrew Moloney (Australia)
118lbs
1 Emmanuel Rodriguez (Puerto Rico)
2 Jason Moloney (Australia)
3 Nonito Donaire (Philippines)
4 Vincent Astrolabio (Philippines)
5 Gary Antonio Russell (USA)
6 Takuma Inoue (Japan)
7 Alexandro Santiago (Mexico)
8 Ryosuke Nishida (Japan)
9 Keita Kurihara (Japan)
10 Paul Butler (England)
122lbs
1 Stephen Fulton (USA)
2 Marlo Tapales (Philippines)
3 Luis Nery (Mexico)
4 Murodjon Akhmadaliev (Uzbekistan)
5 Ra’eese Aleem (USA)
6 Azat Hovhannisyan (Armenia)
7 Kevin Gonzalez (Mexico)
8 Takuma Inoue (Japan)
9 John Riel Casimero (Philippines)
10 Fillipus Nghitumbwa (Namibia)
126lbs
1 Luis Alberto Lopez (Mexico)*
2 Leigh Wood (England)*
3 Brandon Figueroa (USA)
4 Rey Vargas (Mexico)
5 Mauricio Lara (Mexico)
6 Mark Magsayo (Philippines)
7 Josh Warrington (England)
8 Robeisy Ramirez (Cuba)
9 Reiya Abe (Japan)
10 Otabek Kholmatov (Uzbekistan)
130lbs
1 Joe Cordina (Wales)
2 Oscar Valdez (Mexico)
3 Hector Garcia (Dominican Republic)
4 O’Shaquie Foster (USA)
5 Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov (Tajikistan)
6 Roger Gutierrez (Venezuela)
7 Lamont Roach (USA)
8 Eduardo Ramirez (Mexico)
9 Kenichi Ogawa (Japan)
10 Robson Conceicao (Brazil)
135lbs
1 Devin Haney (USA)
2 Gervonta Davis (USA)
3 Vasily Lomachenko (Ukraine)
4 Isaac Cruz (Mexico)
5 William Zepeda Segura (Mexico)
6 Frank Martin (USA)
7 George Kambosos Jnr (Australia)
8 Shakur Stevenson (USA)
9 Raymond Muratalla (USA)
10 Keyshawn Davis (USA)
140lbs
1 Josh Taylor (Scotland)
2 Regis Prograis (USA)
3 Jose Ramirez (USA)
4 Jose Zepeda (USA)
5 Jack Catterall (England)
6 Subriel Matias (Puerto Rico)
7 Arnold Barboza Jr. (USA)
8 Gary Antuanne Russell (USA)
9 Zhankosh Turarov (Kazakhstan)
10 Shohjahon Ergashev (Uzbekistan)
147lbs
1 Errol Spence (USA)
2 Terence Crawford (USA)
3 Yordenis Ugas (Cuba)
4 Vergil Ortiz Jr. (USA)
5 Jaron Ennis (USA)
6 Eimantas Stanionis (Lithuania)
7 David Avanesyan (Russia)
8 Cody Crowley (Canada)
9 Roiman Villa (Columbia)
10 Alexis Rocha (USA)
154lbs
1 Jermell Charlo (USA)
2 Tim Tszyu (Australia)
3 Brian Castano (Argentina)
4 Brian Mendoza (USA)
5 Liam Smith (England)
6 Jesus Alejandro Ramos (USA)
7 Sebastian Fundora (USA)
8 Michel Soro (Ivory Coast)
9 Erickson Lubin (USA)
10 Magomed Kurbanov (Russia)
160lbs
1 Gennady Golovkin (Kazakhstan)
2 Jaime Munguia (Mexico)
3 Carlos Adames (Dominican Republic)
4 Janibek Alimkhanuly (Kazakhstan)
5 Liam Smith (England)
6 Erislandy Lara (USA)
7 Sergiy Derevyanchenko (Ukraine)
8 Felix Cash (England)
9 Esquiva Falcao (Brazil)
10 Chris Eubank Jnr. (Poland)
168lbs
1 Canelo Alvarez (Mexico)
2 David Benavidez (USA)
3 Caleb Plant (USA)
4 Christian Mbilli (France)
5 David Morrell (Cuba)
6 John Ryder (England)
7 Pavel Silyagin (Russia)
8 Vladimir Shishkin (Russia)
9 Carlos Gongora (Ecuador)
10 Demetrius Andrade (USA)
175lbs
1 Dmitry Bivol (Russia)
2 Artur Beterbiev (Canada)
3 Joshua Buatsi (England)
4 Callum Smith (England)
5 Joe Smith Jr. (USA)
6 Gilberto Ramirez (Mexico)
7 Anthony Yarde (England)
8 Dan Azeez (England)
9 Craig Richards (England)
10 Michael Eifert (Germany)
200lbs
1 Jai Opetaia (Australia)
2 Mairis Breidis (Latvia)
3 Chris Billam-Smith (England)*
4 Richard Riakporhe (England)
5 Aleksei Papin (Russia)
6 Badou Jack (Sweden)
7 Arsen Goulamirian (France)
8 Lawrence Okolie (England)
9 Yuniel Dorticos (Cuba)
10 Mateusz Masternak (Poland)
Unlimited
1 Tyson Fury (England)
2 Oleksandr Usyk (Ukraine)
3 Zhilei Zhang (China)
4 Deontay Wilder (USA)
5 Anthony Joshua (England)
6 Andy Ruiz (USA)
7 Filip Hrgovic (Croatia)
8 Joe Joyce (England)
9 Dillian Whyte (England)
10 Frank Sanchez (Cuba)
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British fight fabs had plenty of options last night. Important events were staged in Manchester, in Bournemouth, and in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The locals were delighted in Manchester and Bournemouth, but fans in Belfast were left crestfallen when their hometown hero Michael Conlan, the former two-time Olympian, was on the wrong end of a vicious KO.
Conlan, who was 18-1 heading in, had a four-inch height advantage and three-inch reach advantage over Mexican spoiler Luis Alberto Lopez. The Irishman attracted late money and went to post a small favorite. But Lopez (28-2, 16 KOs) emerged victorious, successfully defending his IBF world featherweight title which he won in British soil over Josh Warrington.
Although Conlan had a rough patch in the second round, he was seemingly in a good position heading into round five when the Mexican invader brought a swift conclusion to the contest, discombobulating Conlan (pictured) with a right uppercut that prompted his trainer Adam Booth to throw in the towel. It was the second time that Conlan came up short in a bid for a world title. He challenged for the WBA version of this belt in March of last year, losing on a spectacular last round knockout to Leigh Wood in a fight that he was winning until the final 90 seconds.
Also…
In a scheduled 12-rounder for a WBC featherweight trinket, five-foot-three Liverpool buzzsaw Nick “Wrecking” Ball advanced to 18-0, (11 KOs) with a 12th-round stoppage of South Africa’s previously undefeated Ludumo Lamati (21-1-1, 11 KOs). Lamati’s corner tossed in the towel after Ball landed a series of hard punches in the final frame.
Lamati was on his feet when the bout was stopped but was in dire straits and was removed from the ring on a stretcher. There was no update on his condition as this story was going to press.
In a companion 12-rounder, Belfast’s Anthony “Apache” Cacace (21-1, 7 KOs) successfully defended his fringe 130-pound title with a wide decision over Damian Wrzesinski (26-3-2). The judges had 118-111, 117-111, and 116-112.
Wrzesinski, a 38-year-old Pole, fought with a brace on his right knee. This was the first fight for “Apache” in his hometown in eight years. The win may have set him up for a match with Welshman Joe Cordina, the IBF junior lightweight title-holder, or Shavkat Rakhimov who lost a close decision to Cordina in a bruising tiff last month.
Manchester
Mauricio Lara didn’t bring his “A” game to England. That became apparent at the weigh-in when he failed to make weight, losing his WBA world featherweight title on the scales. By rule, only Leigh Wood could win it or it would become vacant.
This was a rematch. Fourteen weeks ago, Lara went into Wood’s backyard in Nottingham and stopped him in the seventh round. Lara was behind on the cards when he felled Wood with a crunching left hook. Wood beat the count but his trainer Ben Davison tossed in the towel which struck many, especially Wood, as premature as less than 10 seconds remained in the round.
In a previous trip to England, Lara had broken hearts in Leeds, stopping native son Josh Warrington. The Mexican invader, younger than Leigh Wood by 10 years, was expected to win again, but Wood, 34, simply out-worked him. He knocked Lara down in the second round with an uppercut and methodically kept him at bay, winning by scores of 116-111 and 118-109 twice.
Co-Feature
In his first appearance since his controversial defeat to Josh Taylor in Glasgow in February of last year, Jack Catterall improved to 27-1 (15) with a wide decision over Irish-Australian southpaw Darragh Foley (22-5-1).
The Sportsman called the Catterall-Taylor fight, a split decision win for Taylor, the most controversial fight in British boxing history and Catterall became a more sympathetic figure when Taylor, after several postponements, reneged on his promise to give Catterall a rematch, opting instead for a date with Teofimo Lopez.
Although Foley was in action 10 weeks ago, scoring his signature win with a third-round stoppage of favored Robbie Davies Jr., and Catterall was making his first start in 15 months, this was a one-sided fray in Catterall’s favor. He had Foley on the canvas twice en route to winning by scores of 99-88, 98-89, and 97-90.
Eddie Hearn has expressed an interest in matching Catterall with Regis Prograis assuming that Prograis gets past Arnold Barboza on June 17.
Also
England’s Terri Harper (14-1-1), who jumped up three weight classes last year, successfully defended her WBA 154-pound diadem with a unanimous but unimpressive 10-round decision over perennial title challenger Ivana Habazin. The judges had it 98-92 and 99-93 twice.
Harper was slated to fight former pound-for-pound queen Cecilia Braekhus last Saturday in the co-feature to Taylor vs. Cameron in Dublin, but hat match fell out when Braekhus came down with a bad cold following the weight-in.
Harper is seeking a unification fight with countrywoman Natasha Jonas. Habazin, a 33-year-old Croat, fell to 21-5.
Bournemouth
In his fourth defense of his WBO world cruiserweight title, previously undefeated Lawrence Okolie was soundly defeated by former sparring partner Chris Billam.-Smith The match was contested in Billam-Smith’s hometown before a raucous crowd at sold-out Vitality Stadium.
A 3/1 underdog, Billam-Smith, who was 17-1 heading in, proved clearly superior He knocked Okolie down in the fourth round and again in rounds 10 and 11 en route to winning by scores of 116-107, 115-108, and 112-112.
About that curious 112-112 card. It was turned in by U.S. judge Benjamin Rodriguez who had been working the Illinois-Wisconsin circuit. On social media, his tally is being called the worst scorecard of all time.
Did Billam-Smith’s fans leave happy? The correspondent for British Boxing News called the event “a night of breathtaking boxing action that will never be forgotten.”
The six-foot-five Okolie may have made his last start as a cruiserweight. He aspires to fight Oleksandr Usyk.
The Sweet Science Rankings: Week of May 22nd, 2023
Hiroto Kyoguchi departs 108lbs for 112lbs so there’s a reorganisation at the bottom of the 108lbs division. Fellow Japanese Junto Nakatani’s breathtaking destruction of Andrew Maloney sees him rise to #6 at 115lbs with Maloney dropping to #10; Kosei Tanaki who was also out at the weekend climbs to #9. Raymond Muratalla is the last mover this week, eliminating Jamaine Ortiz and debuting at #9 at 135lbs. There are no further changes at lightweight where Lomachenko maintains his ranking at #3.
*Please note that when the fighter’s name appears with an asterisk it represents a movement in ranking from the previous week.
Pound-for-Pound
01 – Naoya Inoue
02 – Oleksandr Usyk
03 – Juan Francisco Estrada
04 – Dmitry Bivol
05 – Terence Crawford
06 – Errol Spence Jnr.
07 – Tyson Fury
08 – Saul Alvarez
09 – Artur Beterbiev
10 – Shakur Stevenson
105lbs
1 Knockout CP Freshmart (Thailand)
2 Petchmanee CP Freshmart (Thailand)
3 Melvin Jerusalem (Philippines)
4 Ginjiro Shigeoka (Japan)
5 Wanheng Menayothin (Thailand)
6 Daniel Valladares (Mexico)
7 Yudai Shigeoka (Japan)
8 Oscar Collazo (USA)
9 Masataka Taniguchi (Japan)
10 Rene Mark Cuarto (Philippines)
108lbs
1 Kenshiro Teraji (Japan)
2 Jonathan Gonzalez (Puerto Rico)
3 Masamichi Yabuki (Japan)
4 Hekkie Budler (South Africa)
5 Sivenathi Nontshinga (South Africa)
6 Elwin Soto (Mexico)
7 Daniel Matellon (Cuba)
8 Reggie Suganob (Philippines)
9 Shokichi Iwata (Japan)*
10 Esteban Bermudez (Mexico)*
112lbs
1 Sunny Edwards (England)
2 Artem Dalakian (Ukraine)
3 Julio Cesar Martinez (Mexico)
4 Angel Ayala Lardizabal (Mexico)
5 David Jimenez (Costa Rica)
6 Jesse Rodriguez (USA)
7 Ricardo Sandoval (USA)
8 Felix Alvarado (Nicaragua)
9 Seigo Yuri Akui (Japan)
10 Cristofer Rosales (Nicaragua)
115lbs
1 Juan Francisco Estrada (Mexico)
2 Roman Gonzalez (Nicaragua)
3 Jesse Rodriguez (USA)
4 Kazuto Ioka (Japan)
5 Joshua Franco (USA)
6 Junto Nakatani (Japan)*
7 Fernando Martinez (Argentina)
8 Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (Thailand)
9 Kosei Tanaka (Japan)*
10 Andrew Moloney (Australia)
118lbs
1 Emmanuel Rodriguez (Puerto Rico)
2 Jason Moloney (Australia)
3 Nonito Donaire (Philippines)
4 Vincent Astrolabio (Philippines)
5 Gary Antonio Russell (USA)
6 Takuma Inoue (Japan)
7 Alexandro Santiago (Mexico)
8 Ryosuke Nishida (Japan)
9 Keita Kurihara (Japan)
10 Paul Butler (England)
122lbs
1 Stephen Fulton (USA)
2 Marlo Tapales (Philippines)
3 Luis Nery (Mexico)
4 Murodjon Akhmadaliev (Uzbekistan)
5 Ra’eese Aleem (USA)
6 Azat Hovhannisyan (Armenia)
7 Kevin Gonzalez (Mexico)
8 Takuma Inoue (Japan)
9 John Riel Casimero (Philippines)
10 Fillipus Nghitumbwa (Namibia)
126lbs
1 Mauricio Lara (Mexico)
2 Brandon Figueroa (USA)
3 Rey Vargas (Mexico)
4 Luis Alberto Lopez (Mexico)
5 Mark Magsayo (Philippines)
6 Leigh Wood (England)
7 Josh Warrington (England)
8 Robeisy Ramirez (Cuba)
9 Reiya Abe (Japan)
10 Otabek Kholmatov (Uzbekistan)
130lbs
1 Joe Cordina (Wales)
2 Oscar Valdez (Mexico)
3 Hector Garcia (Dominican Republic)
4 O’Shaquie Foster (USA)
5 Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov (Tajikistan)
6 Roger Gutierrez (Venezuela)
7 Lamont Roach (USA)
8 Eduardo Ramirez (Mexico)
9 Kenichi Ogawa (Japan)
10 Robson Conceicao (Brazil)
135lbs
1 Devin Haney (USA)
2 Gervonta Davis (USA)
3 Vasily Lomachenko (Ukraine)
4 Isaac Cruz (Mexico)
5 William Zepeda Segura (Mexico)
6 Frank Martin (USA)
7 George Kambosos Jnr (Australia)
8 Shakur Stevenson (USA)
9 Raymond Muratalla (USA)*
10 Keyshawn Davis (USA)
140lbs
1 Josh Taylor (Scotland)
2 Regis Prograis (USA)
3 Jose Ramirez (USA)
4 Jose Zepeda (USA)
5 Jack Catterall (England)
6 Subriel Matias (Puerto Rico)
7 Arnold Barboza Jr. (USA)
8 Gary Antuanne Russell (USA)
9 Zhankosh Turarov (Kazakhstan)
10 Shohjahon Ergashev (Uzbekistan)
147lbs
1 Errol Spence (USA)
2 Terence Crawford (USA)
3 Yordenis Ugas (Cuba)
4 Vergil Ortiz Jr. (USA)
5 Jaron Ennis (USA)
6 Eimantas Stanionis (Lithuania)
7 David Avanesyan (Russia)
8 Cody Crowley (Canada)
9 Roiman Villa (Columbia)
10 Alexis Rocha (USA)
154lbs
1 Jermell Charlo (USA)
2 Tim Tszyu (Australia)
3 Brian Castano (Argentina)
4 Brian Mendoza (USA)
5 Liam Smith (England)
6 Jesus Alejandro Ramos (USA)
7 Sebastian Fundora (USA)
8 Michel Soro (Ivory Coast)
9 Erickson Lubin (USA)
10 Magomed Kurbanov (Russia)
160lbs
1 Gennady Golovkin (Kazakhstan)
2 Jaime Munguia (Mexico)
3 Carlos Adames (Dominican Republic)
4 Janibek Alimkhanuly (Kazakhstan)
5 Liam Smith (England)
6 Erislandy Lara (USA)
7 Sergiy Derevyanchenko (Ukraine)
8 Felix Cash (England)
9 Esquiva Falcao (Brazil)
10 Chris Eubank Jnr. (Poland)
168lbs
1 Canelo Alvarez (Mexico)
2 David Benavidez (USA)
3 Caleb Plant (USA)
4 Christian Mbilli (France)
5 David Morrell (Cuba)
6 John Ryder (England)
7 Pavel Silyagin (Russia)
8 Vladimir Shishkin (Russia)
9 Carlos Gongora (Ecuador)
10 Demetrius Andrade (USA)
175lbs
1 Dmitry Bivol (Russia)
2 Artur Beterbiev (Canada)
3 Joshua Buatsi (England)
4 Callum Smith (England)
5 Joe Smith Jr. (USA)
6 Gilberto Ramirez (Mexico)
7 Anthony Yarde (England)
8 Dan Azeez (England)
9 Craig Richards (England)
10 Michael Eifert (Germany)
200lbs
1 Jai Opetaia (Australia)
2 Mairis Breidis (Latvia)
3 Lawrence Okolie (England)
4 Richard Riakporhe (England)
5 Aleksei Papin (Russia)
6 Badou Jack (Sweden)
7 Chris Billam-Smith (England)
8 Arsen Goulamirian (France)
9 Yuniel Dorticos (Cuba)
10 Mateusz Masternak (Poland)
Unlimited
1 Tyson Fury (England)
2 Oleksandr Usyk (Ukraine)
3 Zhilei Zhang (China)
4 Deontay Wilder (USA)
5 Anthony Joshua (England)
6 Andy Ruiz (USA)
7 Filip Hrgovic (Croatia)
8 Joe Joyce (England)
9 Dillian Whyte (England)
10 Frank Sanchez (Cuba)
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The Haney-Lomachenko Tempest Smacks of Hagler-Leonard; Dave Moretti Factored in Both
In the Homestretch of His Career, Philadelphia’s Joey “Tank” Dawejko Keeps on Rolling
Avila Perspective, Chap. 237: Battles for Undisputed Status in Dublin and Las Vegas
U.K. Boxing Montage: Conlan KOed; Wood Regains Title; Billam-Smith Upsets Okolie
Romero Controversially TKOs Barroso; Sims Nips Akhmedov in a Barnburner
Avila Perspective, Chap. 235: Canelo Alvarez, Silk Pajamas and More
Nine TSS Writers Analyze the Haney-Lomachenko Fight
Devin Haney Stays Unbeaten; More Controversy in a Las Vegas Ring
Former LA Times Scribe Steve Springer Reflects on His Days on the Boxing Beat
South African Southpaw Kevin Lerena is the Best Fighter in his Weight Class
TSS Salutes Lance Pugmire, the 2023 Nat Fleischer Award Winner
‘How To Box’ by Joe Louis: Part 6 of a 6-Part Series – Putting It All Together
The Hauser Report: The DAZN Experiment
Moloney vs Astrolabio on Saturday has the Mark of an Old-fashioned Dust-Up
Alimkhanuly Destroys Butler and Jason Moloney Outpoints Astrolabio in Stockton
Canelo Alvarez Dominates but Goes the Distance with Stubborn John Ryder
Ralph Boston and Muhammad Ali
‘How To Box’ by Joe Louis: Part 4 – Bodywork and the Uppercut
Avila Perspective, Chap. 236: Jaime Munguia and More
Thomas Hauser Carries On the Legacy of TSS in the Bernie Awards
The Sweet Science Rankings: Week of May 29th, 2023
U.K. Boxing Montage: Conlan KOed; Wood Regains Title; Billam-Smith Upsets Okolie
The Sweet Science Rankings: Week of May 22nd, 2023
‘How To Box’ by Joe Louis: Part 6 of a 6-Part Series – Putting It All Together
Action Galore in the U.K. on Saturday — Title Fights at Three Separate Venues
The Haney-Lomachenko Tempest Smacks of Hagler-Leonard; Dave Moretti Factored in Both
Devin Haney Stays Unbeaten; More Controversy in a Las Vegas Ring
Chantelle Cameron Defeats Katie Taylor in Ireland
Avila Perspective, Chap. 237: Battles for Undisputed Status in Dublin and Las Vegas
‘How To Box’ by Joe Louis: Part 5 – Defense
Nine TSS Writers Analyze the Haney-Lomachenko Fight
South African Southpaw Kevin Lerena is the Best Fighter in his Weight Class
The Sweet Science Rankings: Week of May 15th, 2023
Two Fascinating Tussles Gird Saturday’s Lomachenko-Haney Showdown
Romero Controversially TKOs Barroso; Sims Nips Akhmedov in a Barnburner
Alimkhanuly Destroys Butler and Jason Moloney Outpoints Astrolabio in Stockton
How Good Was Ill-Fated Luther McCarty, the Best of the ‘White Hopes’?
Avila Perspective, Chap. 236: Jaime Munguia and More
Super Lightweights Take Center Stage at the Cosmo on Saturday
‘How To Box’ by Joe Louis: Part 4 – Bodywork and the Uppercut
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