POUND FOR POUND, WE CHOOSE THE TOP 10 LORDS OF THE RING
Mexican Saul Canelo Alvarez headlines our list of boxers from across the world. He’s not the WBA and WBC middleweight champion for nothing
Every boxing publication has its own list of pound for pound stars, and finally Boxing Mecca has joined the fray.
Today BM introduces its own top 10 list based on these attributes: achievements, quality of opposition, pay per view attraction, longevity at the elite level, potential and fame.
As it is the case, P4P is subjective and often depends on one’s preference.
Let the debate begin.
1. Saul Canelo Alvarez
Age: 28
Fight record: 50-1-2, 34 KOs
Since Canelo emerged as a Mexican kid with red hair his boxing has been based more on popularity than his actual achievements in the ring. But there is no denying the willingness of the kid to take on allcomers, including opponents with a stylistic nightmare in his bid to prove himself. Again he may have avoided the clash against Gennady Golovkin, but he took him on not once but twice. Forget about the controversy over the fight’s outcome, but Canelo underlined his boxing ability by going toe-to-toe with the man previously viewed as invincible. For the record, BM scored both fights for Golovkin, but Canelo made them such absorbing contests and made even his fiercest critics to admit that he can fight. Add the fact that he is PPV king and that makes him our pound for pound star. Current titles: WBA, WBC middleweight champion
2. Vasiliy Lomachenko
Age: 30 Fights: 11-1, 9 KOs
There is still fierce debate on whether Lomachenko deserves to be this high when he has fought fewer than a dozen fights. But the Ukrainian proved after one bout that he was a special talent. Now he has won world titles in three weight divisions, running a seven-bout winning streak by knockouts, destroying champions along the way. His highly anticipated clash against WBC lightweight champion Mikey Garcia will prove if Hi-Tech deserves the top spot or a lower placing. Current titles: WBA lightweight title
3. Terrence Crawford
Age: 30 Fights: 33-0, 24 KOs
Some experts consider Bud to be a top dog in these ratings and, when looking at his body of work, few can argue against that assertion. Crawford has won world titles at lightweight, unified all four belts at junior-welterweight and added a WBO crown at welterweight. But his list of opponents are not really murderous, which is why he is placed third here. Current titles: WBO welterweight title
4. Gennady Golovkin
Age: 36 Fights: 38-1-1, 34 KOs
As stated, BM had GGG winning both clashes against Canelo. But the fact that judges had other ideas points to the closeness of the fights, which could have gone either way. While he is still capable of competing at the elite level, there is no denying that GGG is slipping, and that has exposed his other weaknesses such as being one dimensional. Those were never visible when he was knocking out opponents, leading some to anoint him as the king of the P4P. His next step after the gruelling Canelo bouts will be closely monitored as he goes in to the sunset.
Current titles: None
5. Oleksandr Usyk
Age: 31 Fights: 15-0, 11 KOs
Yet another Ukrainian boxer with fewer than 20 bouts on this list. Usyk is already a unified world champion after winning the WBSS cruiserweight series. He is scheduled to defend against Tony Bellew, and a win will enhance his reputation as one of the best in the world. But there will be those questioning his rating due to the absence of big names in his fight record. Current titles: WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO cruiserweight titles
6. Anthony Joshua
Age: 28 Fights: 22-0, 21 KOs
It is good to have a heavyweight in this list because as they say the division is the flagship of boxing. And AJ deserves to be here as he has knocked out all but one of his opponents, collecting WBA, IBF and WBO titles along the way. He continues to infuse interest in the boxing glamour division and his brutal knockout of Alexander Povetkin has reminded experts how exciting the division used to be. All thanks to AJ. Current titles: WBA, IBF, WBO heavyweight titles
7. Naoya Inoue
Age: 25 Fights: 16-0, 14 KOs
The youngest on this list, Inoue is also one of the few boxers campaigning in small divisions here. The kid has blown away everyone put in front of him, winning world titles in three weight classes. The beauty is that having entered into the WBSS he will likely duke it out with our own Zolani Tete in a fight which will crash the latter into these ratings if he wins. There is no denying that Inoue is a mesmerising boxer who sets up a frenetic pace once the first round begins. So far he has knocked out all six of his last opponents. Current titles: WBA regular bantamweight title
8. Errol Spence
Age: 28 Fights: 24-0, 21 KOs
Spence is arguably the only boxer rated in the top 10 purely on potential alone, as he has not done enough since dethroning Kell Brook of his IBF welterweight crown. He is campaigning in a talent deep division and will therefore not be short of quality opposition to test his immense skills. Already Mikey Garcia, rated below, is calling him out, but truth is the “truth” – he will not get too much credit for beating a small fighter like Garcia. He looks the goods, and his beating of Brook right in his own backyard speaks volumes about his mental resolve. But he needs to fight quality opposition urgently, otherwise he will find himself out of this list. Current titles: IBF welterweight title
9. Mikey Garcia
Age: 30 Fights: 39-0, 30 KOs
One wonders where Garcia’s career would have been had he not taken a lengthy break while being embroiled in a contractual dispute. He has returned with the same killer instinct as he captured the WBC lightweight title, ventured into the juniorwelterweight, where he won the IBF title, but returned to the lightweight. As mentioned, he has been calling out Spence in a move which has been frowned upon, as he is considered too small for the welterweight king. At least he cannot be accused of lacking heart.
Current titles: WBC lightweight title
10. Srisaket Sor Rungvisai
Age: 31 Fights: 51-0, 41 KOs
Rungvisai, whose real name is Wisaksil Wangek, crashed into this list after beating top dog Roman Gonzalez, who was placed at the top by several publications. His follow-up win over Juan Fransisco Estrada proved without doubt that he is indeed a world-class champion, although Estrada has been disputing the outcome and is now chasing for a rematch. Current titles: WBC junior bantamweight title Honourable mentions: Leo Santa Cruz (34-1-1, 19KOs), Zolani Tete (27-3, 21KOs), Donnie Nietes (41-1-5, 23 KOs), Deontay Wilder (40-0, 39KOs), Kosei Tanaka (12-0, 7KOs)