Usyk overtakes Inoue, Crawford for top spot
CUsyk (22-0, 14 KOs), a 2012 Olympic gold medallist for Ukraine and the first fourbelt, undisputed cruiserweight champion in history, concluded his incredible march to the top of the heavyweight division last weekend
onsidering how difficult it is to even make the top 10 of boxing’s pound-for-pound list as a heavyweight, it makes everything that Oleksandr Usyk has accomplished all the more incredible.
Usyk (22-0, 14 KOs), a 2012 Olympic gold medallist for Ukraine and the first four-belt, undisputed cruiserweight champion in history, concluded his incredible march to the top of the heavyweight division last weekend by rallying to drop and edge lineal and WBC champion Tyson Fury in their instant classic of an undisputed clash in Saudi Arabia. Not only has Usyk, who joins Naoya Inoue and Terence Crawford as the only male boxers to become undisputed champion in two divisions during the four-belt era, carved out his own unique place in the sport’s rich history given how perfect his boxing journey has been up to this point, the crafty southpaw deserves one more sizable piece of recognition. By overcoming a 40-pound deficit, including huge disadvantages in reach (seven inches) and height (six inches) against the 6-foot-9 Fury, the 37-year-old Usyk now rightfully takes his claim as the top P4P fighter in the entire sport.
POUND-FOR-POUND RANKINGS
1. Oleksandr Usyk: Undisputed heavyweight champion (220, 14 KOs) | Previous ranking: No. 4
2. Naoya Inoue: Undisputed junior featherweight champion (24-0, 22 KOs) | Previous ranking: No. 1
3. Terence Crawford: Undisputed welterweight champion (39-0, 29 KOs) | Previous ranking: No. 2
4. Canelo Alvarez: Undisputed super middleweight champion (61-2-2, 38 KOs) | Previous ranking: No. 3
5. Artur Beterbiev: Unified light heavyweight champion (20-0, 20 KOs) | Previous ranking: 5
6. Dmitry Bivol: WBA light heavyweight champion (210, 11 KOs) | Previous ranking: No. 6
7. Gervonta Davis: WBA lightweight titleholder (29-0, 27 KOs) | Previous ranking: 7
8. Shakur Stevenson: WBC lightweight champion (21-0, 10 KOs) | Previous ranking: No. 9
9. David Benavidez: Super middleweight (28-0, 24 KOs) | Previous ranking: No. 10
10. Tyson Fury: Heavyweight (34-1-1, 25 KOs) | Previous ranking: No. 8.