{"id":708046,"date":"2026-06-01T15:29:09","date_gmt":"2026-06-01T15:29:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/708046\/"},"modified":"2026-06-01T15:29:09","modified_gmt":"2026-06-01T15:29:09","slug":"boxing-rankings-usyk-after-rico-benavidez-bivol-foster-inoue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/708046\/","title":{"rendered":"Boxing rankings: Usyk after Rico, Benavidez, Bivol, Foster, Inoue"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">We\u2019re back! Things got muddled for a couple months there so this is our first update since March, and we\u2019re taking into account three full months of boxing\u2019s results and also reshuffling here and there, because I think it\u2019s important to do that, as I\u2019ve said before. Things can change fast, performance matters as much as wins and losses a lot of the time, and you start seeing things differently here and there. If you don\u2019t do this, in my experience, you wind up staying static and keeping people ranked highly just because they were before.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Anyway, on with the many lists!<\/p>\n<p>Heavyweight (Limit: None)<\/p>\n<p>    Last<br \/>\n    Rank<br \/>\n    Name<br \/>\n    Info<\/p>\n<p>    1<br \/>\n    1<br \/>\n    Oleksandr Usyk<br \/>\n    WBC, WBA, IBF<br \/>24-0-0 (15)<br \/>Ukraine<br \/>Next: Rico Verhoeven, 5\/23<\/p>\n<p>    4<br \/>\n    2<br \/>\n    Agit Kabayel<br \/>\n    27-0-0 (19)<br \/>Germany<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    2<br \/>\n    3<br \/>\n    Tyson Fury<br \/>\n    35-2-1 (24)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    6<br \/>\n    4<br \/>\n    Daniel Dubois<br \/>\n    WBO<br \/>23-3-0 (22)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    10<br \/>\n    5<br \/>\n    Moses Itauma<br \/>\n    14-0-0 (12)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    3<br \/>\n    6<br \/>\n    Fabio Wardley<br \/>\n    20-1-1 (19)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    5<br \/>\n    7<br \/>\n    Joseph Parker<br \/>\n    36-4-0 (24)<br \/>New Zealand<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    7<br \/>\n    8<br \/>\n    Anthony Joshua<br \/>\n    29-4-0 (26)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: Kristian Prenga, 7\/25<\/p>\n<p>    9<br \/>\n    9<br \/>\n    Filip Hrgovic<br \/>\n    20-1-0 (15)<br \/>Croatia<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    10<br \/>\n    Frank Sanchez<br \/>\n    26-1-0 (19)<br \/>Cuba<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>Titles: WBC &#8211; Oleksandr Usyk, WBA &#8211; Oleksandr Usyk, IBF &#8211; Oleksandr Usyk, WBO &#8211; Daniel DuboisUpcoming Notable Fights: Dante Stone vs Kingsley Ibeh, 6\/20 \u2026 Gurgen Hovhannisyan vs Uila Mau\u2019u, 7\/11 \u2026 (7) Anthony Joshua vs Kristian Prenga, 7\/25<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Notes: Oleksandr Usyk retains the top spot. The Rico fight is weird, it\u2019s an anomaly of sorts, it\u2019s hard to know what to make of it in a ratings context. Same with Fury scraping by Ngannou a couple years ago.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Speaking of, Tyson Fury dips to No. 3, I just didn\u2019t make much of his win over Makhmudov nor his performance, but Tyson is still No. 2 or No. 3, I just think Agit Kabayel\u2019s recent performances really have earned a nod above today\u2019s version of Tyson.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Daniel Dubois goes up to No. 4 after trouncing Fabio Wardley, who drops to No. 6. Moses Itauma shoots up the rankings because when I look at the landscape of this division, the way that guy\u2019s been thrashing opponents is quite impressive compared to the field. He\u2019s young, he may sink instead of swim when the opposition gets better, but I\u2019m being bold here. I really think he\u2019s that good.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Frank Sanchez returns to the rankings after absolutely obliterating Richard Torrez Jr, and his win from years ago over Efe Ajagba still matters enough for me to put him in at No. 10 over Ajagba, who was the other consideration for me.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">We now wait for big fights to shake out. AJ vs Fury is likely coming, so long as the two of them get past tune-ups they don\u2019t actually need very much. Usyk vs Kabayel seems the probable next fight, but I would actually not be shocked if Usyk retired or gave up the WBC belt and fought Rico again.<\/p>\n<p>Cruiserweight (Limit: 200)<\/p>\n<p>    Last<br \/>\n    Rank<br \/>\n    Name<br \/>\n    Info<\/p>\n<p>    1<br \/>\n    1<br \/>\n    Jai Opetaia<br \/>\n    Zuffa<br \/>30-0-0 (23)<br \/>Australia<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    2<br \/>\n    David Benavidez<br \/>\n    WBA, WBO<br \/>32-0-0 (26)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    2<br \/>\n    3<br \/>\n    Gilberto &#8220;Zurdo&#8221; Ramirez<br \/>\n    48-2-0 (30)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    3<br \/>\n    4<br \/>\n    Chris Billam-Smith<br \/>\n    21-2-0 (13)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: Ryan Rozicki, 6\/6<\/p>\n<p>    4<br \/>\n    5<br \/>\n    Noel Mikaelyan<br \/>\n    WBC<br \/>28-3-0 (12)<br \/>Armenia<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    5<br \/>\n    6<br \/>\n    Badou Jack<br \/>\n    29-4-3 (17)<br \/>Sweden<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    6<br \/>\n    7<br \/>\n    Michal Cieslak<br \/>\n    28-2-0 (22)<br \/>Poland<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    7<br \/>\n    8<br \/>\n    Yuniel Dorticos<br \/>\n    27-3-0 (25)<br \/>Cuba<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    10<br \/>\n    9<br \/>\n    Viddal Riley<br \/>\n    14-0-0 (7)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    8<br \/>\n    10<br \/>\n    Ryan Rozicki<br \/>\n    21-1-1 (20)<br \/>Canada<br \/>Next: Chris Billam-Smith, 6\/6<\/p>\n<p>Titles: WBC &#8211; Noel Mikaelyan, WBA &#8211; David Benavidez, IBF &#8211; Vacant, WBO &#8211; David Benavidez, Zuffa &#8211; Jai OpetaiaUpcoming Notable Fights: (4) Chris Billam-Smith vs (10) Ryan Rozicki, 6\/6 \u2026 Jack Massey vs Cheavon Clarke, 6\/6 \u2026 Leonardo Mosquea vs Francisco Rivas, 6\/6 \u2026 Luke Modini vs Xibei Jia, 6\/6 \u2026 David Nyika vs Floyd Masson, 8\/8 \u2026 Karim Maatalla vs TBA, 8\/8<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Notes: I don\u2019t love Zuffa, but I\u2019ll acknowledge their belt(s) with the others. Every bit as legit, especially in this case with Opetaia, who is the top cruiserweight in the sport. I don\u2019t love the WBC, WBA, IBF, or WBO, either. Zuffa will soon enough have some weak champions. So do all of those sanctioning bodies.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">David Benavidez rockets into the cruiserweight rankings and sits just behind Opetaia. The way Benavidez smoked Zurdo Ramirez really was a special performance. Zurdo is a good, tough fighter, and Benavidez took him apart and made him quit, basically. I don\u2019t think a fight with Opetaia would be quite so easy for David, because Opetaia has hand speed that Zurdo lacks and a greater danger in his return fire, but I also know Benavidez is smart enough that he wouldn\u2019t fight Zurdo the same way, and Benavidez hasn\u2019t put a foot wrong in game planning yet.<\/p>\n<p>Light Heavyweight (Limit: 175)<\/p>\n<p>    Last<br \/>\n    Rank<br \/>\n    Name<br \/>\n    Info<\/p>\n<p>    1<br \/>\n    1<br \/>\n    Dmitry Bivol<br \/>\n    WBA, IBF, WBO<br \/>25-1-0 (12)<br \/>Russia<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    2<br \/>\n    2<br \/>\n    David Benavidez<br \/>\n    WBC<br \/>32-0-0 (26)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    4<br \/>\n    3<br \/>\n    Albert Ramirez<br \/>\n    22-0-0 (19)<br \/>Venezuela<br \/>Next: Lerrone Richards, 6\/4<\/p>\n<p>    5<br \/>\n    4<br \/>\n    Joshua Buatsi<br \/>\n    20-1-0 (13)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    6<br \/>\n    5<br \/>\n    Anthony Yarde<br \/>\n    27-4-0 (24)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    7<br \/>\n    6<br \/>\n    Imam Khataev<br \/>\n    11-1-0 (10)<br \/>Russia<br \/>Next: Mickael Diallo, 6\/4<\/p>\n<p>    8<br \/>\n    7<br \/>\n    Radivoje Kalajdzic<br \/>\n    30-3-0 (22)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    9<br \/>\n    8<br \/>\n    Umar Dzambekov<br \/>\n    14-0-0 (10)<br \/>Austria<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    10<br \/>\n    9<br \/>\n    Willy Hutchinson<br \/>\n    20-2-0 (14)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    10<br \/>\n    Najee Lopez<br \/>\n    16-0-0 (13)<br \/>Puerto Rico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>Titles: WBC &#8211; David Benavidez, WBA &#8211; Dmitry Bivol, IBF &#8211; Dmitry Bivol, WBO &#8211; Dmitry BivolUpcoming Notable Fights: (3) Albert Ramirez vs Lerrone Richards, 6\/4 \u2026 (6) Imam Khataev vs Mickael Diallo, 6\/4 \u2026 Mehmet Unal vs Yoann Kongolo, 6\/11 \u2026 Lyndon Arthur vs Lewis Edmondson, 6\/20 \u2026 Ben Whittaker vs Richard Rivera, 6\/27 \u2026 Jean Pascal vs Francis Lafreniere, 6\/27 \u2026 Ardian Krasniqi vs Vinko Zadro, 6\/27 \u2026 Maidel Sando vs TBA, 7\/7<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Notes: Dmitry Bivol is back, easy win over Michael Eifert, and now something bigger probably comes next. Probably. Maybe not! Could be Artur Beterbiev, who remains unranked here due to inactivity. I\u2019m not as high on a third fight between Bivol and a 41-year-old, inactive Beterbiev as some may be. Maybe it\u2019s still a good fight, maybe it kinda isn\u2019t. And I say that as a huge fan of Beterbiev and Bivol, too, really. That said, unless the alternative is David Benavidez, I don\u2019t know that you can make a better fight than Bivol vs Beterbiev 3, either. I know that among the current 175 crop, you can\u2019t make a bigger one other than Benavidez.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">David Morrell goes a-tumbling out of the top 10 after his shock upset loss to Zak Chelli, who does not join the top 10, but maybe would if we had our own pretend champions like The Ring does, which would provide an extra \u201ccontender\u201d spot.<\/p>\n<p>Super Middleweight (Limit: 168)<\/p>\n<p>    Last<br \/>\n    Rank<br \/>\n    Name<br \/>\n    Info<\/p>\n<p>    1<br \/>\n    1<br \/>\n    Canelo Alvarez<br \/>\n    63-3-2 (39)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: Christian Mbilli, 9\/12<\/p>\n<p>    2<br \/>\n    2<br \/>\n    Osleys Iglesias<br \/>\n    IBF<br \/>15-0-0 (14)<br \/>Cuba<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    3<br \/>\n    3<br \/>\n    Christian Mbilli<br \/>\n    WBC<br \/>29-0-1 (24)<br \/>France<br \/>Next: Canelo Alvarez, 9\/12<\/p>\n<p>    4<br \/>\n    4<br \/>\n    Lester Martinez<br \/>\n    19-0-1 (16)<br \/>Argentina<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    5<br \/>\n    5<br \/>\n    Diego Pacheco<br \/>\n    25-0-0 (18)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    6<br \/>\n    6<br \/>\n    Hamzah Sheeraz<br \/>\n    WBO<br \/>23-0-1 (19)<br \/>United Kigndom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    7<br \/>\n    Jaime Munguia<br \/>\n    WBA<br \/>46-2-0 (35)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    7<br \/>\n    8<br \/>\n    Jacob Bank<br \/>\n    19-0-0 (11)<br \/>Denmark<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    8<br \/>\n    9<br \/>\n    Kevin Sadjo<br \/>\n    28-1-0 (25)<br \/>France<br \/>Next: Richard Mtangi, 6\/10<\/p>\n<p>    10<br \/>\n    10<br \/>\n    Bektemir Melikuziev<br \/>\n    17-1-0 (11)<br \/>Uzbekistan<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>Titles: WBC &#8211; Christian Mbilli, WBA &#8211; Jaime Munguia, IBF &#8211; Osleys Iglesias, WBO &#8211; Hamzah SheerazUpcoming Notable Fights: Weljon Mindoro vs Elias Espadas, 6\/5 \u2026 (9) Kevin Sadjo vs Richard Mtangi, 6\/10 \u2026 Wilkens Mathieu vs Esquiva Falcao, 6\/11 \u2026 Moreno Fendero vs Jonathan Gonzalez-Ortiz, 6\/11 \u2026 Edin Avdic vs Juan Narvaez, 6\/19 \u2026 Elijah Garcia vs Ryan Adams, 6\/20 \u2026 William Scull vs TBA, 7\/7 \u2026 (1) Canelo Alvarez vs (3) Christian Mbilli, 9\/12<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Notes: Canelo has his next fight, and as expected it will be against Christian Mbilli on September 12, when \u201cMexico\u201d goes on the road to battle \u201cThe World,\u201d celebrating Mexican Independence with a real spectacle in Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">The post-Crawford vacancies have all been filled and settled into place. Jaime Munguia took the WBA title from Armando Resendiz, a fight that should have made it clear enough how much of a contender Caleb Plant isn\u2019t at this moment, and that\u2019s the sort of thing I mean when I talk about getting too \u201cstatic\u201d if you don\u2019t start shuffling now and then and dusting things off. Plant was a top name in this division some years back. Big emphasis on \u201csome years back.\u201d Having him ranked highly right now just doesn\u2019t reflect the division\u2019s reality to me.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Mbilli, like Resendiz, was \u201celevated\u201d and now makes a big defense. Osleys Iglesias claimed the IBF. And Hamzah Sheeraz had the WBO title gift-wrapped and delivered with a basket of beautiful fresh-baked breads and high-end jams.<\/p>\n<p>Middleweight (Limit: 160)<\/p>\n<p>    Last<br \/>\n    Rank<br \/>\n    Name<br \/>\n    Info<\/p>\n<p>    2<br \/>\n    1<br \/>\n    Carlos Adames<br \/>\n    WBC<br \/>25-1-1 (18)<br \/>Dominican Republic<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    1<br \/>\n    2<br \/>\n    Erislandy Lara<br \/>\n    WBA<br \/>32-3-3 (19)<br \/>Cuba<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    3<br \/>\n    3<br \/>\n    Aaron McKenna<br \/>\n    20-0-0 (10)<br \/>Ireland<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    4<br \/>\n    4<br \/>\n    Jesus Ramos Jr<br \/>\n    24-1-0 (19)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    8<br \/>\n    5<br \/>\n    Yoenli Hernandez<br \/>\n    10-0-0 (9)<br \/>Cuba<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    6<br \/>\n    6<br \/>\n    Etinosa Oliha<br \/>\n    22-0-0 (10)<br \/>Italy<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    7<br \/>\n    7<br \/>\n    Anauel Ngamissengue<br \/>\n    15-1-0 (10)<br \/>France<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    8<br \/>\n    Denzel Bentley<br \/>\n    22-3-1 (18)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    10<br \/>\n    9<br \/>\n    George Liddard<br \/>\n    14-0-0 (8)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    10<br \/>\n    Andreas Katzourakis<br \/>\n    17-0-0 (11)<br \/>Greece<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>Titles: WBC &#8211; Carlos Adames, WBA &#8211; Erislandy Lara, IBF &#8211; Vacant, WBO &#8211; Janibek AlimkhanulyUpcoming Notable Fights: Michele Soro vs Hassan Mwakinyo, 6\/10 \u2026 Troy Isley vs Leonardo Di Stefano, 6\/14 \u2026 Derek Pomerlau vs TBA, 6\/17 \u2026 Brad Pauls vs Bradley Goldsmith, 6\/20 \u2026 Jahi Tucker vs Euri Cedeno, 6\/27 \u2026 Bujar Tahiri vs TBA, 6\/27<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Notes: A switch at the top. Carlos Adames\u2019 win over Ammo Williams kinda trumps the entire middleweight run of Lara, realistically. Would be nice if they fought each other! Lara did intend to fight Janibek. Speaking of, the IBF title that was stripped from Janibek has been given an order for a fight between Aaron McKenna and Etinosa Oliha, which is a fine enough matchup. Meanwhile, the WBO continue to keep Janibek as champ despite the drug test failures that saw the IBF strip him.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Dropping out from last time are Ammo Williams, who lost pretty heavily to Adames, and Fiodor Czerkaszyn, who did nothing wrong but this is what I\u2019m feeling right now. Denzel Bentley and Andreas Katzourakis are in. Katzourakis scored a really solid win over Misael Rodriguez on the May 10 Zuffa card, and Bentley\u2019s on a good run of form right now, too, picking up the British and European titles two fights ago, and the interim WBO belt on April 4.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">There are a lot of combinations you could have this division ordered after Adames\/Lara or Lara\/Adames at the top right now. The margins are thin. Also in the mix for me at the moment: Czerkaszyn still, Shane Mosley Jr, Ammo, Amari Jones (if you\u2019re about to super object to that, I\u2019m talking about Amari, not Omari), Vadim Tukov. And I\u2019ve got a real eye on Jahi Tucker vs Euri Cedeno, too; an impressive performance in victory for one of those guys puts them in this conversation.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">If you were giving individual scores to fighters over a top 10 \u2014 this guy is an 8.7, then we\u2019ve got an 8.2, a few spots later is a 6.8 or whatever \u2014 then a top 10 would always have a better average among those 10 fighters than a top 15 would, just because it\u2019s less people. But this is a division where I think a top 10 and top 15 would basically be the same average score for me. There\u2019s nothing really separating a bunch of people.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">(John doesn\u2019t seem to have caught on fully to Katzourakis just yet, if we\u2019re all quiet enough a bit longer he won\u2019t dropkick the door in waving the Greek flag.)<\/p>\n<p>Super Welterweight (Limit: 154)<\/p>\n<p>    Last<br \/>\n    Rank<br \/>\n    Name<br \/>\n    Info<\/p>\n<p>    2<br \/>\n    1<br \/>\n    Sebastian Fundora<br \/>\n    WBC<br \/>24-1-1 (16)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    1<br \/>\n    2<br \/>\n    Vergil Ortiz Jr<br \/>\n    24-0-0 (22)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    3<br \/>\n    3<br \/>\n    Jaron &#8220;Boots&#8221; Ennis<br \/>\n    35-0-0 (31)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: Xander Zayas, 6\/27<\/p>\n<p>    4<br \/>\n    4<br \/>\n    Xander Zayas<br \/>\n    WBA, WBO<br \/>23-0-0 (13)<br \/>Puerto Rico<br \/>Next: Jaron Ennis, 6\/27<\/p>\n<p>    5<br \/>\n    5<br \/>\n    Israil Madrimov<br \/>\n    11-2-1 (7)<br \/>Uzbekistan<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    6<br \/>\n    6<br \/>\n    Josh Kelly<br \/>\n    IBF<br \/>18-1-1 (9)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    7<br \/>\n    7<br \/>\n    Abass Baraou<br \/>\n    17-2-0 (9)<br \/>Germany<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    8<br \/>\n    8<br \/>\n    Bakhram Murtazaliev<br \/>\n    23-1-0 (17)<br \/>Russia<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    9<br \/>\n    9<br \/>\n    Yoenis Tellez<br \/>\n    12-1-0 (8)<br \/>Cuba<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    10<br \/>\n    10<br \/>\n    Tim Tszyu<br \/>\n    27-3-0 (18)<br \/>Australia<br \/>Next: Errol Spence Jr, 7\/25<\/p>\n<p>Titles: WBC &#8211; Sebastian Fundora, WBA &#8211; Xander Zayas, IBF &#8211; Josh Kelly, WBO &#8211; Xander ZayasUpcoming Notable Fights: Milan Prat vs Amiri Rashidi Matumla, 6\/10 \u2026 Freddy Kiwitt vs Erik Agtaeljan, 6\/13 \u2026 (3) Jaron \u201cBoots\u201d Ennis vs (4) Xander Zayas, 6\/27 \u2026 (10) Tim Tszyu vs Errol Spence Jr, 7\/25<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Notes: Sebastian Fundora goes up to No. 1 for now. The win over Keith Thurman was just Keith Thurman, old and small, but he\u2019s active and winning impressively, which trumps what Vergil Ortiz is doing at the moment. My feeling right now is that the Zayas vs Ennis winner will have their own strong argument in July, but we\u2019ll have to see what happens.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">The other news of note is that Errol Spence Jr is indeed returning, and will face Tim Tszyu in late July. If Spence looks good, yeah, he\u2019ll probably jump into the top 10. But there are a lot of questions about Spence right now. The man hasn\u2019t fought in three years, got absolutely walloped the last time he did, and is 36 years old. He\u2019s also going up in weight. He also had some concerns about his general condition and dedication to boxing even before this very long hiatus. A long break honestly can be good, but I\u2019d advise real caution with the expectations of his form upon return.<\/p>\n<p>Welterweight (Limit: 147)<\/p>\n<p>    Last<br \/>\n    Rank<br \/>\n    Name<br \/>\n    Info<\/p>\n<p>    1<br \/>\n    1<br \/>\n    Devin Haney<br \/>\n    WBO<br \/>33-0-0 (15)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    2<br \/>\n    2<br \/>\n    Eimantas Stanionis<br \/>\n    16-1-0 (9)<br \/>Lithuania<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    3<br \/>\n    3<br \/>\n    Rolly Romero<br \/>\n    WBA<br \/>17-2-0 (13)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    9<br \/>\n    4<br \/>\n    Ryan Garcia<br \/>\n    WBC<br \/>25-2-0 (21)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: Conor Benn, 9\/12<\/p>\n<p>    5<br \/>\n    5<br \/>\n    Brian Norman Jr<br \/>\n    29-1-0 (23)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    8<br \/>\n    6<br \/>\n    Jack Catterall<br \/>\n    33-2-0 (14)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    7<br \/>\n    7<br \/>\n    Lewis Crocker<br \/>\n    IBF<br \/>22-0-0 (11)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: Liam Paro, 6\/24<\/p>\n<p>    4<br \/>\n    8<br \/>\n    Vadim Musaev<br \/>\n    14-0-0 (9)<br \/>Russia<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    10<br \/>\n    9<br \/>\n    Conah Walker<br \/>\n    18-3-1 (9)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    10<br \/>\n    Liam Paro<br \/>\n    27-1-0 (16)<br \/>Australia<br \/>Next: Lewis Crocker, 6\/24<\/p>\n<p>Titles: WBC &#8211; Ryan Garcia, WBA &#8211; Rolly Romero, IBF &#8211; Lewis Crocker, WBO &#8211; Devin HaneyUpcoming Notable Fights: Egidijus Kavaliauskas vs Luis Lopez, 6\/19 \u2026 (6) Lewis Crocker vs (10) Liam Paro, 6\/24 \u2026 Victor Cakiqi vs Florent Davis, 6\/27 \u2026 Brandun Lee vs Cain Sandoval, 6\/28 \u2026 Tiger Johnson vs Christopher Guerrero, 7\/4 \u2026 Harlem Eubank vs David Papot, 7\/18 \u2026 (4) Ryan Garcia vs Conor Benn, 9\/12 \u2026 Floyd Mayweather vs Manny Pacquiao, 9\/19<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Notes: Did some major shuffling into more what I think the division really is right now, again a case where it\u2019s easy for a guy to sit on a spot because the movement in the division has been a little strange. Stanionis has barely been active since losing to Boots Ennis, Haney feels pretty vulnerable for an unbeaten No. 1 and three-division champ, Romero and Garcia are inconsistent oddballs, Norman got pretty well handled by Haney but otherwise always looks good, Crocker\u2019s two wins over Paddy Donovan both had some questions but they were wins all the same, and the second one in particular was solid \u2014 on and on.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">There is star power here, relatively speaking, although certainly this isn\u2019t five or 10 years ago in this division. All of that star power feels a lot more vulnerable than it did in those days, which in a way can be exciting, if they take good fights.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">On Romero\u2019s activity: It\u2019s been 13 months since he fought. We\u2019re giving him two more to get something scheduled. That\u2019s my usual adjustment for Boxing Circumstances of some sort, a three-month grace period. Rolly had negotiated with Manny Pacquiao\u2019s team for a January fight that obviously never materialized. As it stands, he probably should have lined up something else by now, but he\u2019s on the PBC roster and PBC has very limited dates at this point. So a bit of leeway, but it\u2019s coming up soon.<\/p>\n<p>Super Lightweight (Limit: 140)<\/p>\n<p>    Last<br \/>\n    Rank<br \/>\n    Name<br \/>\n    Info<\/p>\n<p>    1<br \/>\n    1<br \/>\n    Shakur Stevenson<br \/>\n    WBO<br \/>25-0-0 (11)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    2<br \/>\n    2<br \/>\n    Dalton Smith<br \/>\n    WBC<br \/>19-0-0 (14)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    5<br \/>\n    3<br \/>\n    Gary Antuanne Russell<br \/>\n    WBA<br \/>19-1-0 (17)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    6<br \/>\n    4<br \/>\n    Subriel Matias<br \/>\n    23-3-0 (22)<br \/>Puerto Rico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    7<br \/>\n    5<br \/>\n    Alberto Puello<br \/>\n    24-1-0 (10)<br \/>Dominican Republic<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    8<br \/>\n    6<br \/>\n    Adam Azim<br \/>\n    15-0-0 (12)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    9<br \/>\n    7<br \/>\n    Keyshawn Davis<br \/>\n    15-0-0 (10)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    10<br \/>\n    8<br \/>\n    Lamont Roach<br \/>\n    25-1-3 (10)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    9<br \/>\n    Pierce O&#8217;Leary<br \/>\n    19-0-0 (11)<br \/>Ireland<br \/>Next: Mark Chamberlain, 8\/1<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    10<br \/>\n    Isaac &#8220;Pitbull&#8221; Cruz<br \/>\n    28-3-2 (18)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>Titles: WBC &#8211; Dalton Smith, WBA &#8211; Gary Antuanne Russell, IBF &#8211; Vacant, WBO &#8211; Shakur StevensonUpcoming Notable Fights: Jhon Orobio vs Jonathan Montrel, 6\/4 \u2026 Kuntae Lee vs Izuki Tomioka, 6\/6 Joshuah Lupia vs Pasquale Barile, 6\/6 \u2026 Mazlum Akdeniz vs Maurice Lee, 6\/17 \u2026 Emiliano Vargas vs Bryce Mills, 6\/27 \u2026 (9) Pierce O\u2019Leary vs Mark Chamberlain, 8\/1<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Notes: Teofimo Lopez has fully confirmed he\u2019s going up to 147, so he\u2019s out at 140. If he changes his mind, I put him back in. It\u2019s not that hard, really. And the same goes for Richardson Hitchins, who has vacated the IBF title and signed with Zuffa to move to 147. That will stick, because Zuffa doesn\u2019t do the \u201cin-between\u201d divisions like 140 for now.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">So Pierce O\u2019Leary \u2014 who has an August fight I\u2019m really looking forward to against Mark \u201cKid Turki\u201d Chamberlain \u2014 and Pitbull Cruz are in. Both spots are fragile, as most 8 through 10s are in any division. Guys like Tito Mercado and Artur Biyarslanov have arguments about on the same level, and could make a better one with any fight.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">I was really impressed with Adam Azim when I watched his TKO-3 win over Steve Claggett. Claggett\u2019s kind of a knockaround pro, solid but not a contender, but that guy is tough and does not get trucked like that historically. He went all 12 with Teofimo in 2024. His only other stoppage loss was in 2011. Azim thrashing him like that says something for Azim\u2019s ability. Azim might really be No. 2 or No. 3 in this division right now.<\/p>\n<p>    Last<br \/>\n    Rank<br \/>\n    Name<br \/>\n    Info<\/p>\n<p>    1<br \/>\n    1<br \/>\n    Raymond Muratalla<br \/>\n    IBF<br \/>22-0-0 (17)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    2<br \/>\n    2<br \/>\n    Abdullah Mason<br \/>\n    WBO<br \/>20-0-0 (17)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: Joe Cordina, 7\/4<\/p>\n<p>    3<br \/>\n    3<br \/>\n    Floyd Schofield<br \/>\n    19-0-0 (13)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    4<br \/>\n    4<br \/>\n    Sam Noakes<br \/>\n    18-1-0 (16)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    5<br \/>\n    5<br \/>\n    William Zepeda<br \/>\n    33-1-0 (27)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    6<br \/>\n    6<br \/>\n    Andy Cruz<br \/>\n    6-1-0 (3)<br \/>Cuba<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    7<br \/>\n    7<br \/>\n    Bakhodur Usmonov<br \/>\n    12-0-0 (5)<br \/>Tajikistan<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    8<br \/>\n    8<br \/>\n    Jadier Herrera<br \/>\n    18-0-0 (16)<br \/>Cuba<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    9<br \/>\n    Andres Cortes<br \/>\n    25-0-0 (13)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    9<br \/>\n    10<br \/>\n    Armando Martinez<br \/>\n    17-0-0 (15)<br \/>Cuba<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>Titles: WBC &#8211; Vacant, WBA &#8211; Gervonta \u201cTank\u201d Davis, IBF &#8211; Raymond Muratalla, WBO &#8211; Abdullah MasonUpcoming Notable Fights: Dzimitry Asanau vs Roger Gutierrez, 6\/4 \u2026 Avery Martin Duval vs Jose Rodolfo Macias, 6\/4 \u2026 Shuma Nakazato vs Taiga Imanaga, 6\/7 \u2026 Siro Choi vs Hong Quan Dinh, 6\/13 \u2026 Joshua Pagan vs Rodolfo Bustamante, 6\/14 \u2026 Jose Valenzuela vs Edwin De Los Santos, 6\/28 \u2026 (2) Abdullah Mason vs Joe Cordina, 7\/4<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Notes: Only a minor shift, with Andres Cortes coming in now that he\u2019s signed with Zuffa, moved up to 135, and won a fight. Justin Pauldo drops out.<\/p>\n<p>Super Featherweight (Limit: 130)<\/p>\n<p>    Last<br \/>\n    Rank<br \/>\n    Name<br \/>\n    Info<\/p>\n<p>    1<br \/>\n    1<br \/>\n    Emanuel Navarrete<br \/>\n    IBF, WBO<br \/>40-2-1 (31)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    2<br \/>\n    2<br \/>\n    O&#8217;Shaquie Foster<br \/>\n    WBC<br \/>25-3-0 (12)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    4<br \/>\n    3<br \/>\n    Robson Conceicao<br \/>\n    19-3-1 (8)<br \/>Brazil<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    5<br \/>\n    4<br \/>\n    Charly Suarez<br \/>\n    18-0-0 (10)<br \/>Philippines<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    3<br \/>\n    5<br \/>\n    Anthony Cacace<br \/>\n    IBF<br \/>25-1-0 (9)<br \/>Ireland<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    6<br \/>\n    6<br \/>\n    Eduardo &#8220;Sugar&#8221; Nunez<br \/>\n    29-2-0 (27)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    7<br \/>\n    7<br \/>\n    Oscar Valdez<br \/>\n    33-3-0 (24)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    8<br \/>\n    8<br \/>\n    Raymond Ford<br \/>\n    18-2-1 (8)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    9<br \/>\n    Ryan Garner<br \/>\n    19-0-0 (10)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: Michael Magnesi, 6\/20<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    10<br \/>\n    Josh Padley<br \/>\n    18-1-0 (6)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: Aqib Fiaz, 6\/6<\/p>\n<p>Titles: WBC &#8211; O\u2019Shaquie Foster, WBA &#8211; Anthony Cacace, IBF &#8211; Emanuel Navarrete, WBO &#8211; Emanuel NavarreteUpcoming Notable Fights: Edward Vazquez vs Daniel Lugo, 6\/5 \u2026 (10) Josh Padley vs Aqib Fiaz, 6\/6 \u2026 (9) Ryan Garner vs Michael Magnesi, 6\/20 \u2026 Liam Wilson vs Alexandru Marin, 6\/24 \u2026 Yamato Hata vs Tsubasa Narai, 7\/4 \u2026 Hayato Tsutsumi vs TBA, 7\/14<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Notes: It\u2019s a tough call for the No. 1 slot between Navarrete and Foster, but they\u2019ve both been fantastic for years now at 130. Still edge a bit to Navarrete, but it\u2019s close. Foster looked really good again beating Ray Ford, and for what it\u2019s worth, the situation this division has right now, I don\u2019t think Ford lost any standing. He lost to a better fighter in a good fight. I\u2019d probably pick Ford to beat Oscar Valdez, really. And I still think Ford\u2019s very best might be ahead of him. He handles adversity pretty well in fights, that\u2019s the most impressive thing about him to me. More than his hand speed or anything.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Foster wants a fight with Shakur Stevenson, says if he can\u2019t get that he hopes to fight Navarrete. I\u2019d honestly rather see the Navarrete fight, but I\u2019m guessing Foster might get more money out of the Shakur bout, and also that seems more personal for him. We\u2019ll see what Shakur does next. Could be 140, could be 147, could be 135, could be signing with Zuffa which would mean 147 or 135.<\/p>\n<p>Featherweight (Limit: 126)<\/p>\n<p>    Last<br \/>\n    Rank<br \/>\n    Name<br \/>\n    Info<\/p>\n<p>    1<br \/>\n    1<br \/>\n    Rafael Espinoza<br \/>\n    WBO<br \/>28-0-0 (24)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    2<br \/>\n    2<br \/>\n    Brandon Figueroa<br \/>\n    WBA<br \/>27-2-1 (20)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    3<br \/>\n    3<br \/>\n    Angelo Leo<br \/>\n    IBF<br \/>26-1-0 (12)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    4<br \/>\n    4<br \/>\n    Bruce Carrington<br \/>\n    WBC<br \/>17-0-0 (10)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: Rene Palacios, 7\/4<\/p>\n<p>    5<br \/>\n    5<br \/>\n    Nick Ball<br \/>\n    23-1-1 (13)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    8<br \/>\n    6<br \/>\n    Mirco Cuello<br \/>\n    16-0-0 (13)<br \/>Argentina<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    10<br \/>\n    7<br \/>\n    Luis Nery<br \/>\n    37-2-0 (28)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: John Riel Casimero, 6\/6<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    8<br \/>\n    Liam Davies<br \/>\n    18-1-0 (9)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    9<br \/>\n    Cristobal Lorente<br \/>\n    21-0-3 (8)<br \/>Spain<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    10<br \/>\n    Lorenzo Parra<br \/>\n    24-1-1 (18)<br \/>Venezuela<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>Titles: WBC &#8211; Bruce Carrington, WBA &#8211; Brandon Figueroa, IBF &#8211; Angelo Leo, WBO &#8211; Rafael EspinozaUpcoming Notable Fights: (7) Luis Nery vs John Riel Casimero, 6\/6 \u2026 Omar Trinidad vs Jerwin Ancajas, 6\/28 \u2026 (4) Bruce Carrington vs Rene Palacios, 7\/4<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Notes: Three new in at the back end, three out.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Otabek Kholmatov is gone on inactivity. He hasn\u2019t had a serious fight in over two years, hasn\u2019t had a fight at all in 14 months, has nothing scheduled. I think he\u2019s a good fighter, but that\u2019s how it goes. Sam Goodman is gone because he\u2019s moved back down to 122, and is ranked there. And Ra\u2019eese Aleem is out because he missed weight and had an IBF title fight with Angelo Leo scrapped. We\u2019ll also give Leo something of a grace period; technically, he\u2019s now inactive a year, but that\u2019s not his fault. He showed up to fight, he made weight.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Carrington has a chance to leapfrog Leo if he looks good on July 4, but I don\u2019t think that fight is quite at the level to jump Figueroa at No. 2.<\/p>\n<p>Super Bantamweight (Limit: 122)<\/p>\n<p>    Last<br \/>\n    Rank<br \/>\n    Name<br \/>\n    Info<\/p>\n<p>    1<br \/>\n    1<br \/>\n    Naoya Inoue<br \/>\n    WBC, WBA, IBF, WBO<br \/>33-0-0 (27)<br \/>Japan<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    3<br \/>\n    2<br \/>\n    Junto Nakatani<br \/>\n    32-1-0 (24)<br \/>Japan<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    4<br \/>\n    3<br \/>\n    Sebastian Hernandez<br \/>\n    20-1-0 (18)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    4<br \/>\n    Sam Goodman<br \/>\n    22-1-0 (8)<br \/>Australia<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    5<br \/>\n    5<br \/>\n    Alan Picasso<br \/>\n    32-1-1 (17)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    6<br \/>\n    6<br \/>\n    Ramon Cardenas<br \/>\n    27-2-0 (15)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    7<br \/>\n    Ryosuke Nishida<br \/>\n    11-1-0 (2)<br \/>Japan<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    7<br \/>\n    8<br \/>\n    Shabaz Masoud<br \/>\n    15-0-0 (4)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    8<br \/>\n    9<br \/>\n    Murodjon Akhmadaliev<br \/>\n    14-2-0 (11)<br \/>Uzbekistan<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    10<br \/>\n    10<br \/>\n    Fillipus Nghitumbwa<br \/>\n    17-2-0 (15)<br \/>South Africa<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>Titles: WBC &#8211; Naoya Inoue, WBA &#8211; Naoya Inoue, IBF &#8211; Naoya Inoue, WBO &#8211; Naoya InoueUpcoming Notable Fights: Toshiya Ishii vs Kaito Yamasaki, 6\/7 \u2026 Arturo Cardenas vs Jordan Martinez, 6\/13 \u2026 Alexandro Santiago vs Alessio Lorusso, 6\/21<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Notes: Inoue vs Nakatani has come and gone, and I think we pretty obviously saw the two best super bantamweights in the sport. They sit a clear 1-2 for me, and I think if you go back to Nakatani\u2019s fight with Sebastian Hernandez, that guy put in the effort that, to me, in a volatile sort of division at the moment, earns him the No. 3 spot.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Lots of changes. Sam Goodman is back at 122, looked good, he\u2019s never lost at this weight, he comes in high at No. 4. Ryosuke Nishida comes in at No. 7 on the strength of a good win over Bryan Mercado, and hey, before he got stopped, he was giving Nakatani some decent looks down at bantamweight, too. Nishida can box. Fillipus Nghitumbwa comes in at No. 10; the South African had a loss to John Riel Casimero in 2023, has won five in a row since, including a TKO-1 stoppage of Yukinori Oguni, and that carries a little weight at the moment, too. Why? Because Oguni is the reason Marlon Tapales is out of the top 10, Oguni scored a 10-round decision upset over Tapales on April 3 in Tokyo.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">In a weird way, this is a very interesting division below the top two guys, who I don\u2019t think anyone else can beat or is on that same level. But it\u2019s really nip-and-tuck beyond that with a lot of good fighters.<\/p>\n<p>Bantamweight (Limit: 118)<\/p>\n<p>    Last<br \/>\n    Rank<br \/>\n    Name<br \/>\n    Info<\/p>\n<p>    1<br \/>\n    1<br \/>\n    Seiya Tsutsumi<br \/>\n    WBA<br \/>13-0-3 (8)<br \/>Japan<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    3<br \/>\n    2<br \/>\n    Takuma Inoue<br \/>\n    WBC<br \/>22-2-0 (5)<br \/>Japan<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    2<br \/>\n    3<br \/>\n    Christian Medina<br \/>\n    WBO<br \/>27-4-0 (19)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    4<br \/>\n    4<br \/>\n    Jose Salas<br \/>\n    IBF<br \/>17-0-0 (11)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    9<br \/>\n    5<br \/>\n    Tenshin Nasukawa<br \/>\n    8-1-0 (3)<br \/>Japan<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    6<br \/>\n    6<br \/>\n    Antonio Vargas<br \/>\n    19-1-1 (11)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: Jesse &#8220;Bam&#8221; Rodriguez, 6\/13<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    7<br \/>\n    Riku Masuda<br \/>\n    10-1-0 (9)<br \/>Japan<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    10<br \/>\n    8<br \/>\n    David Cuellar<br \/>\n    29-1-0 (18)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    9<br \/>\n    Michael Angeletti<br \/>\n    14-0-0 (8)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: Kenneth Llover, 6\/6<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    10<br \/>\n    Andrew Cain<br \/>\n    15-1-0 (13)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>Titles: WBC &#8211; Takuma Inoue, WBA &#8211; Seiya Tsutsumi, IBF &#8211; Jose Salas, WBO &#8211; Christian MedinaUpcoming Notable Fights: (9) Michael Angeletti vs Kenneth Llover, 6\/6 \u2026 Shori Umezu vs Keita Kurihara, 6\/6 \u2026 Tasana Salapat vs Noli James Maquilan, 6\/10 \u2026 (6) Antonio Vargas vs Jesse \u201cBam\u201d Rodriguez, 6\/13 \u2026 Mauro Forte vs Vincenzo Picardi, 7\/4<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Notes: Bam Rodriguez is coming into the division this month. Sounds like a pit stop, basically, as he\u2019s checking in at 118 to win a title (?????????????) from Antonio Vargas en route to a fight at 122 with Naoya Inoue. The title bit is somewhat of a mess. Vargas was promoted to full WBA titlist a little less than a year ago, and defended in a draw against Daigo Higa, while Seiya Tsutsumi was moved to \u201cchampion in recess.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">But Tsutsumi has returned and as of their latest update, I double-checked here, Tsutsumi is listed by the WBA as champion, not Vargas. But obviously the WBA will want some money, so I\u2019m guessing somehow Vargas is also WBA champion. Usually on their rankings they\u2019ll list, you know, Super World, World, Interim, whatever they\u2019ve got, but not at 118. Just Tsutsumi as \u201cWorld Champion.\u201d No mention of Vargas. That\u2019s probably just a mistake, or at least could be explained away as one, but anyway, whatever Bam\u2019s possibly\/probably about to win with the WBA at 118, it\u2019s full-on paper belt status because of the standard idiot way this has all been handled. He\u2019s a great fighter, but I\u2019m not about to take this claim of a world title at 118 seriously. Not his fault, just standard WBA absurdity.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Tenshin Nasukawa gets a bump back up after his pretty one-sided win over Juan Francisco Estrada. Estrada\u2019s small at 118, he\u2019s gotten older, but he still clearly could fight. He just couldn\u2019t do much of anything with Tenshin.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">This remains one of my favorite divisions in boxing at the moment, has been for a while. Nobody\u2019s great, but there\u2019s a lot of quality, and these guys tend to fight each other.<\/p>\n<p>Super Flyweight (Limit: 115)<\/p>\n<p>    Last<br \/>\n    Rank<br \/>\n    Name<br \/>\n    Info<\/p>\n<p>    2<br \/>\n    1<br \/>\n    Fernando Martinez<br \/>\n    18-1-0 (9)<br \/>Argentina<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    3<br \/>\n    2<br \/>\n    David Jimenez<br \/>\n    18-1-0 (12)<br \/>Costa Rica<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    4<br \/>\n    3<br \/>\n    Phumelela Cafu<br \/>\n    11-1-3 (8)<br \/>South Africa<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    5<br \/>\n    4<br \/>\n    Ricardo Malajika<br \/>\n    17-2-0 (12)<br \/>South Africa<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    6<br \/>\n    5<br \/>\n    Tomoya Tsuboi<br \/>\n    3-0-1 (2)<br \/>Japan<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    7<br \/>\n    6<br \/>\n    Chocolatito Gonzalez<br \/>\n    53-4-0 (42)<br \/>Nicaragua<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    8<br \/>\n    7<br \/>\n    Willibaldo Garcia<br \/>\n    IBF<br \/>23-6-2 (13)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: Andrew Moloney, 6\/6<\/p>\n<p>    10<br \/>\n    8<br \/>\n    Ryusei Kawaura<br \/>\n    15-2-0 (9)<br \/>Japan<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    9<br \/>\n    Sikho Nqothole<br \/>\n    22-3-0 (13)<br \/>South Africa<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    10<br \/>\n    Theophilus Allotey<br \/>\n    14-0-0 (11)<br \/>Ghana<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>Titles: WBC &#8211; Jesse \u201cBam\u201d Rodriguez, WBA &#8211; Jesse \u201cBam\u201d Rodriguez, IBF &#8211; Willibaldo Garcia, WBO &#8211; Jesse \u201cBam\u201d RodriguezUpcoming Notable Fights: (7) Willibaldo Garcia vs Andrew Moloney, 6\/6 \u2026 Jayr Raquinel vs Kenbun Torres, 7\/12<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Notes: Bam Rodriguez hasn\u2019t vacated his belts yet, but he\u2019s functionally gone from the division, moving up this month with plans to move up again right after, should he win. Now, if he doesn\u2019t win, he\u2019d have leverage to come back to 115, and if he does that, we put him back.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Rene Calixto is also out, as he\u2019s moving down to flyweight to challenge for a title.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">So it\u2019s a division that will have to figure itself out soon at the top levels. Good chance the WBA will elevate David Jimenez from interim status to full title status, which would be fair enough, given how things work. Hopefully that means those thought to be real contenders fight each other, but it\u2019s boxing, so we\u2019ll see. That said, there\u2019s depth in this division, and it can also be a chance for someone to really emerge.<\/p>\n<p>    Last<br \/>\n    Rank<br \/>\n    Name<br \/>\n    Info<\/p>\n<p>    2<br \/>\n    1<br \/>\n    Ricardo Sandoval<br \/>\n    WBC, WBA<br \/>27-2-0 (18)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    3<br \/>\n    2<br \/>\n    Anthony Olascuaga<br \/>\n    WBO<br \/>12-1-0 (9)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: Andy Dominguez, 7\/11<\/p>\n<p>    2<br \/>\n    3<br \/>\n    Masamichi Yabuki<br \/>\n    IBF<br \/>19-4-0 (18)<br \/>Japan<br \/>Next: Rene Calixto, 6\/6<\/p>\n<p>    4<br \/>\n    4<br \/>\n    Seigo Yuri Aku<br \/>\n    22-3-1 (12)<br \/>Japan<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    5<br \/>\n    5<br \/>\n    Angel Ayala<br \/>\n    19-1-0 (8)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    8<br \/>\n    6<br \/>\n    Felix Alvarado<br \/>\n    42-5-0 (35)<br \/>Nicaragua<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    9<br \/>\n    7<br \/>\n    Jonathan Gonzalez<br \/>\n    29-4-1 (14)<br \/>Puerto Rico<br \/>Next: Abraham Perez, 6\/14<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    8<br \/>\n    Yoali Mejia<br \/>\n    15-0-0 (12)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    7<br \/>\n    9<br \/>\n    Galal Yafai<br \/>\n    9-0-0 (7)<br \/>United Kingdom<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    10<br \/>\n    Abraham Perez<br \/>\n    14-0-0 (7)<br \/>United States<br \/>Next: Jonathan Gonzalez, 6\/14<\/p>\n<p>Titles: WBC &#8211; Ricardo Sandoval, WBA &#8211; Ricardo Sandoval, IBF &#8211; Masamichi Yabuki, WBO &#8211; Anthony OlascuagaUpcoming Notable Fights: (3) Masamichi Yabuki vs Rene Calixto, 6\/6 \u2026 (7) Jonathan Gonzalez vs (10) Abraham Perez, 6\/14 \u2026 (2) Anthony Olascuaga vs Andy Dominguez, 7\/11<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Notes: Up first, should be noted that the loss was taken off of Galal Yafai\u2019s record finally, with Francisco Rodriguez Jr\u2019s failed drug test fully acknowledged in April. Hey, only took nine months. Rodriguez, meanwhile, won a WBC eliminator on May 30, beating Angelino Cordova. We\u2019ll see if that win sticks for Rodriguez, since the two before it both got erased. You\u2019d think the WBC, with their immense concern for doping in boxing, would not keep rewarding someone with further opportunities, but that would involve taking them seriously in the first place.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Yafai technically goes inactive this month but will get a grace period. I still wonder what he\u2019ll really have if\/when the fight with Ricardo Sandoval is rescheduled. You can give him back the \u201c0,\u201d but you can\u2019t take away the beating he took from Rodriguez.<\/p>\n<p>Light Flyweight (Limit: 108)<\/p>\n<p>    Last<br \/>\n    Rank<br \/>\n    Name<br \/>\n    Info<\/p>\n<p>    1<br \/>\n    1<br \/>\n    Rene Santiago<br \/>\n    WBA, WBO<br \/>16-4-0 (9)<br \/>Puerto Rico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    3<br \/>\n    2<br \/>\n    Shokichi Iwata<br \/>\n    WBC<br \/>16-2-0 (13)<br \/>Japan<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    7<br \/>\n    3<br \/>\n    Thanongsak Simsri<br \/>\n    IBF<br \/>40-1-0 (35)<br \/>Thailand<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    2<br \/>\n    4<br \/>\n    Carlos Canizales<br \/>\n    28-3-1 (20)<br \/>Venezuela<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    4<br \/>\n    5<br \/>\n    Regie Suganob<br \/>\n    18-1-0 (7)<br \/>Philippines<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    5<br \/>\n    6<br \/>\n    Erik Badillo<br \/>\n    19-0-0 (8)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    8<br \/>\n    7<br \/>\n    Sivenathi Nontshinga<br \/>\n    14-2-0 (11)<br \/>South Africa<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    9<br \/>\n    8<br \/>\n    Cristian Araneta<br \/>\n    25-3-0 (20)<br \/>Philippines<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    9<br \/>\n    Kyosuke Takami<br \/>\n    10-1-0 (8)<br \/>Japan<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    10<br \/>\n    Aaron De La Cruz<br \/>\n    14-0-0 (9)<br \/>Mexico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>Titles: WBC &#8211; Shokichi Iwata, WBA &#8211; Rene Santiago, IBF &#8211; Thanongsak Simsri, WBO &#8211; Rene SantiagoUpcoming Notable Fights: TBA<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Notes: Iwata claimed the WBC title from Thammanoon Niyomtrong (aka Knockout CP Freshmart) via 8th round TKO on March 15, pretty much dominated him. Thammanoon\u2019s status as a champ was pretty paper-y in the first place and he got a beating in that fight, he\u2019s had a good career but the last two times he\u2019s faced anyone near true world class, he has been dominated.<\/p>\n<p>Minimumweight (Limit: 105)<\/p>\n<p>    Last<br \/>\n    Rank<br \/>\n    Name<br \/>\n    Info<\/p>\n<p>    1<br \/>\n    1<br \/>\n    Oscar Collazo<br \/>\n    WBA, WBO<br \/>14-0-0 (11)<br \/>Puerto Rico<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    3<br \/>\n    2<br \/>\n    Pedro Taduran<br \/>\n    IBF<br \/>20-4-1 (14)<br \/>Philippines<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    4<br \/>\n    3<br \/>\n    DianXing Zhu<br \/>\n    17-1-0 (14)<br \/>China<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    10<br \/>\n    4<br \/>\n    Siyakholwa Kuse<br \/>\n    WBC<br \/>10-3-1 (4)<br \/>South Africa<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    2<br \/>\n    5<br \/>\n    Melvin Jerusalem<br \/>\n    25-4-0 (12)<br \/>Philippines<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    5<br \/>\n    6<br \/>\n    Joey Canoy<br \/>\n    25-5-2 (15)<br \/>Philippines<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    6<br \/>\n    7<br \/>\n    Ryusei Matsumoto<br \/>\n    8-0-0 (4)<br \/>Japan<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    7<br \/>\n    8<br \/>\n    Takeshi Ishii<br \/>\n    11-1-0 (8)<br \/>Japan<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    9<br \/>\n    Joseph Sumabong<br \/>\n    10-1-0 (5)<br \/>Philippines<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>    &#8211;<br \/>\n    10<br \/>\n    Beaven Sibanda<br \/>\n    9-1-0 (3)<br \/>Zimbabwe<br \/>Next: TBA<\/p>\n<p>Titles: WBC &#8211; Siyakholwa Kuse, WBA &#8211; Oscar Collazo, IBF &#8211; Pedro Taduran, WBO &#8211; Oscar CollazoUpcoming Notable Fights: Russell Acosta vs Mario Cardenas, 6\/6<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1upudxki _174s0un1 _174s0un0 _1mt21p01\">Note: Kuse upset Jersusalem to win the WBC title on May 16 in Kempton Park, where Kuse obviously had home advantage, which was a rematch of a close fight in the Philippines last October.<a href=\"http:\/\/www.badlefthook.com\/boxing-rankings\/113427\/ryan-garcia-rebounds-figueroa-moves-at-feather-more-boxing-rankings-for-march-2026#comments\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"We\u2019re back! Things got muddled for a couple months there so this is our first update since March,&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":708047,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[447],"tags":[703,711,1146,49,48,82],"class_list":["post-708046","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-boxing","tag-boxing","tag-boxing-news","tag-boxing-rankings","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/708046","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=708046"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/708046\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/708047"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=708046"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=708046"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=708046"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}