With four sanctioning bodies, massive corruption, and a media that is often just as confused as anyone else, boxing is the only sport where the fans can’t be assured of ever knowing its own champions. Here’s a guide to who are boxing’s real champions in each of the seventeen weight classes:
Heavyweight (200+ lbs.)
Champion: Wladimir Klitschko (Ukraine) (55-3, 49 KOs)
There are three belt holders in the division, but there is no doubt who is the real deal among the sport’s big boys. Klitschko has made nine successful defenses of the title in a five-year reign and has fought most of the top contenders along the way.
Top Contender: Wladimir’s brother, Vitali Klitschko (42-2, 39 KOs) is the true top contender, but since the brother vs. brother bout isn’t going to happen, belt holder, David Haye (25-1, 23 KOs) is the next in line. Wladimir Klitschko and David Haye are scheduled to meet later in the year.
Cruiserweight (200 lbs.)
Champion: Marco Huck (Germany) (32-1, 23 KOs)
Despite a loss to his top contender in 2007, Huck has earned his top spot due to activity since winning his WBO title in 2009. With seven defenses in under 20 months, Huck is by far the most active of the recognized cruiserweight champs. Defenses against Denis Lebedev, Ola Afolabi, and Victor Ramirez also give the Germany-based champion some real street cred.
Top Contender: Steve Cunningham (24-2, 12 KOs) holds a 2007 win over Huck and is, technically, the better fighter, but with only four fights in three years, he can’t be given the top spot.
Light Heavyweight (175 lbs.)
Champion: Jean Pascal (Canada/Haiti) (26-1-1, 16 KOs)
As the man who beat the man, Pascal jumped to the top of the division with his technical decision win over Chad Dawson last year.
Top Contender: 46-year old “Executioner,” Bernard Hopkins (51-5-2, 32 KOs) should’ve gotten the nod in a controversial draw with Pascal last December. He’s set to have a rematch with the popular Haitian-Canadian fighter in May for top dog status.
Super Middleweight: (168 lbs.)
Champion: Andre Ward (USA) (23-0, 13 KOs)
A tough pick in a stacked division, Ward gets the nod based off his dominant wins over Mikkel Kessler, Allan Green, and Sakio Bika.
Top Contender: Canadian resident, Lucian Bute (28-0, 23) looms large in the horizon after the Super Six super middleweight tournament is over. Tough UK brawler, Carl Froch (27-1, 20 KOs) is not far behind.
Middleweight (160 lbs.)
Champions: Sergio Martinez (Argentina) (47-2-2, 26 KOs)
Despite being stripped of the two belts he won against Kelly Pavlik last year (WBO, WBC), Martinez is, without a doubt, the lineal and true middleweight champion and has performed accordingly.
Top Contender: Germany’s Felix Sturm (35-2-1, 15 Kos) has owned a middleweight title, over two reigns, for more than five years. Sturm’s unwillingness to leave his home country and an overall low level of opposition keeps him from the top spot. Russia’s Dmitry Pirog (18-0, 14 KOs) is also on deck as a top challenger.
Jr. Middleweight (154 lbs.)
Champion: Alfredo Angulo (Mexico) (19-1, 16 KOs)
Before being taken out of commission by immigration issues, Angulo had been active and energized against a solid level of opposition, Not a clear choice for champion status, Angulo gets the nod in a division that is filled with parity, yet plagued with politics.
Top Contender: Kermit Cintron (32-3-1, 28 KOs) holds a 2009 win over Angulo, but has only fought twice since then. Miguel Cotto (36-2, 29 KOs) is also a worthy top contender.
Welterweight (147 lbs.)
Champion: Manny Pacquiao (The Philippines) (52-3-2, 38 KOs)
Wins over Miguel Cotto, Oscar De la Hoya, and Joshua Clottey earn Pacquiao the top spot in one of boxing’s glamor divisions.
Top Contender: Floyd Mayweather Jr. (41-0, 25 KOs), who is still, technically, the lineal champ, can make a real case for the number one spot, but inactivity has hurt his standing in the division.
Jr. Welterweight (140 lb.)
Champion: Timothy Bradley (USA) (27-0, 11 KOs)
Even before the win over former top contender, Devon Alexander, Bradley was at the top of the 140 lb. food chain with wins over the likes of Kendall Holt, Junior Witter, Nate Campbell, and Lamont Peterson.
Top Contender: The UK’s Amir Khan (24-1, 17 KOs) has stormed the division and made his case as top contender with wins over Paulie Malignaggi and Marcos Maidana.
Lightweight (135 lbs.)
Champion: Juan Manuel Marquez (Mexico) (52-5-1, 38 KOs)
With wins over a former Ring Magazine champ, Joel Casamayor, as well as two wins over Juan Diaz and a stoppage victory over Michael Katsidis, Marquez is the undisputed champ of the lightweights.
Top Contender: Brandon Rios (27-0-1, 20 KOs) is young, strong and aggressive. He’s also coming off two impressive wins inside the distance? against Miguel Acosta and Anthony Peterson.
Super Featherweight (130 lbs.)
Champion: Takashi Uchiyama (Japan) (17-0, 14 KOs)
In a rather dreary division, Uchiyama stands slightly ahead of the pack with recent wins over Juan Carlos Salgado and Takashi Miura.
Top Contender: South Africa’s Mzonke Fana (30-4, 12 KOs) is division belt holder and just a bit behind Uchiyama. Fana’s claim to fame is going 1-1 with fellow South African and former world champion, Cassius Baloyi.
Featherweight (126 lbs.)
Champion: Yuriorkis Gamboa (Cuba) (20-0 16 KOs)
Gamboa is, for now, at the top of a very competitive featherweight class, going 7-0 with 5 knockouts since making his debut in the division. Jonathan Victor Barros, Orlando Salido, and Rogers Mtagwa top his list of opponents.
Top Contender: Puerto Rico’s Juan Manuel Lopez (30-0, 27 KOs) is slightly behind in the division, with just three wins at 126 lbs. (Rogers Mtagwa, Bernabe Concepcion, and Steven Luevano). A Lopez-Gamboa showdown would resolve a lot of debates at featherweight.
Jr. Featherweight: (122 lbs.)
Champion: Toshiaki Nishioka (Japan) (37-4-3, 23 KOs)
The quick-fisted Japanese fighter gets the nod as top dog of the division after wins over Brit, Rendall Munroe and Mexican star, Jhonny Gonzalez.
Top Contender: Second-generation Puerto Rican belt holder, Wilfredo Vazquez Jr. (20-0-1, 17 KOs), has all the skill and talent to make it to the top? He just needs the opportunity.
Bantamweight (118 lbs.)
Champion: Nonito Donaire (The Philippines/USA) (26-1, 18 KOs)
“The Filipino Flash” cut to the front of a very long line of quality bantamweights with his two-round destruction of Fernando Montiel in February. Before that, a total annihilation of former champ, Volodymyr Sydorenko, helped announce his arrival in the packed 118 lb. class.
Top Contender: There are many outstanding bantamweights at the moment, but the winner of the upcoming Abner Mares (21-0-1, 13 KOs)-Joseph Agbeko (28-2, 22 KOs) bout should be considered the best of the rest. Also, long-time belt holder, Anselmo Moreno (30-1-1, 10 KOs) of Panama deserves consideration.
Super Flyweight (115 lbs.)
Champion: Hugo Cazares (Mexico) (34-6-2, 24 KOs)
The heavy-handed Mexican earned his champion status the hard way? On the road. With three of his last five contests taking place in Japan against top Japanese stars, Cazares’ 4-0-1 record in those five bouts is truly impressive.
Top Contender: Countryman, Tomas Rojas (35-12-1, 23 KOs) came up the hard way and learned his lessons in mismatches against much more experienced fighters. Now, with a win over the tough Japanese star, Nobuo Nashiro, in February and equally tough Kohei Kono last year, Rojas has finally worked his way to the top.
Flyweight (112 lbs.)
Champion: Pongsaklek Wonjongkam (Thailand) (80-3-1, 44 KOs)
The long-reigning champ from Thailand has been a flyweight title holder for eight of the last ten years and has notched twenty title defenses over two separate title reigns.
Top Contender: Mexico’s Hernan Marquez (30-2, 23 KOs) immediately cut to the front of the line of contenders with his exciting stoppage of belt holder, Luis Concepcion of Panama. Former jr. flyweight star, Edgar Sosa, is also a quality candidate for top contender status.
Jr. Flyweight (108 lbs.)
Champion: Giovani Segura (Mexico) (27-1-1, 23 KOs)
“The Aztec Warrior,” Segura proved his divisional dominance by stopping former 108 lb. kingpin, Ivan Calderon on two separate occasions. Sprinkle in about a half-dozen other quality wins and you have the recipe for divisional dominance.
Top Contender: Nicaragua’s, “El Chocolatito,” Roman Gonzalez (28-0, 23 KOs) may not have to win a bout to ascend to top dog status since Segura has already announced his plans to move up in weight. In any case, Gonzalez is a young, quality action-fighter with tremendous potential.
Minimumweight (105 lbs.)
Champion: Nkosinathi Joyi (South Africa) (21-0, 15 KOs)
South Africa’s most famous little man has made big waves in his short time in the sport. With two recent wins over quality fighters, Florante Condes and Raul Garcia, Joyi is a world class boxer just entering into the prime of his career.
Top Contender: With an upset TKO 5 win over quality belt holder, Oleydong Sithsamerchai, Japan’s Kazuto Ioka (7-0, 5 KOs) became an unlikely 22-year old top contender.
Sources:
The Boxing Tribune, The Boxing Tribune World Rankings, The Boxing Tribune Boxrec, Boxrec Records and Stats, Boxrec
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