Anthony Joshua, Oleksandr Gvozdyk, Tyron Zeuge, Sergiy Derevyanchenko, Regis Prograis, Mikey Garcia, Carlos Canizales, Boxing

Combat Press Boxing Rankings: April 2018

In the world of boxing, the rankings picture can get a little muddled. There are multiple titleholders and different organizational rankings. We’ve taken the approach of simply identifying who we think are the 10 best fighters in each weight class as of this moment.

Every month, Combat Press will rank each weight class from heavyweight to strawweight, as well as the pound-for-pound rankings.

Note: the numbers in parentheses represent the fighter’s ranking from the previous rankings.


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Heavyweight
  1. Anthony Joshua (1)
  2. Deontay Wilder (2)
  3. Luis Ortiz (3)
  4. Joseph Parker (4)
  5. Alexander Povetkin (5)
  6. Kubrat Pulev (6)
  7. Jarrell Miller (7)
  8. Dillian Whyte (8)
  9. Andy Ruiz Jr. (9)
  10. Carlos Takam (10)

Despite an active month for the top-10 heavyweights, the rankings remain the same. Anthony Joshua is still undefeated after edging Joshua Parker in a snoozefest. Joshua remains in the top slot among heavyweights, while Parker retains his No. 4 ranking. Alexander Povetkin viciously knocked out David Price. Povetkin, who remains in the No. 5 spot, is still one of the more feared heavyweights on the planet. No. 8-ranked Dillian Whyte also delivered a vicious knockout with his finish of Lucas Browne. Meanwhile, Andy Ruiz Jr., who sits in the ninth spot, returned from a layoff to knock out Devin Vargas.

Cruiserweight (200 Pounds)
  1. Oleksandr Usyk (1)
  2. Murat Gassiev (2)
  3. Mairis Briedis (3)
  4. Denis Lebedev (4)
  5. Krzysztof Glowacki (5)
  6. Yunier Dorticos (6)
  7. Ilunga Makabu (7)
  8. Krzysztof Wlodarczyk (8)
  9. Maksim Vlasov (9)
  10. Dmitry Kudryashov (10)

No fighters in the top 10 were in action this month, so the rankings remain unchanged.

Light Heavyweight (175 Pounds)
  1. Adonis Stevenson (1)
  2. Sergey Kovalev (2)
  3. Eleider Alvarez (3)
  4. Oleksandr Gvozdyk (4)
  5. Artur Beterbiev (5)
  6. Dmitry Bivol (6)
  7. Badou Jack (7)
  8. Sullivan Barrera (8)
  9. Marcus Browne (9)
  10. Joe Smith Jr. (10)

No. 4-ranked Oleksandr Gvozdyk won by unanimous decision over Mehdi Amar to capture the interim WBC light heavyweight title. The performance left much to be desired, and Gvozdyk will need to perform better when he eventually takes on a competitor within the top 10.

Super Middleweight (168 Pounds)
  1. Gilberto Ramirez (1)
  2. George Groves (2)
  3. James DeGale (3)
  4. Chris Eubank Jr. (4)
  5. Anthony Dirrell (5)
  6. Callum Smith (6)
  7. Jose Uzcategui (7)
  8. David Benavidez (8)
  9. Tyron Zeuge (9)
  10. Caleb Truax (10)

Tyron Zeuge holds onto his No. 9 spot in the rankings after scoring a knockout of Isaac Ekpo to keep a firm hold on the WBA super middleweight crown. It was the second contest between Zeuge and Ekpo within a year. The first bout between the pair was stopped early, with a technical decision granted to Zeuge.

Middleweight (160 Pounds)
  1. Gennady Golovkin (1)
  2. Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (2)
  3. Daniel Jacobs (3)
  4. Billy Joe Saunders (4)
  5. David Lemieux (5)
  6. Jermall Charlo (6)
  7. Sergiy Derevyanchenko (7)
  8. Avtandil Khurtsidze (8)
  9. Ryoto Murata (9)
  10. Demetrius Andrade (10)

Sergiy Derevyanchenko is a force in the middleweight division. The No. 7-ranked fighter will soon get his chance to show that he should be considered among the elite. In March, he made easy work of Dashon Johnson, whom he finished in the eighth round.

Jr. Middleweight (154 Pounds)
  1. Erislandy Lara (1)
  2. Jermell Charlo (2)
  3. Jarrett Hurd (3)
  4. Julian Williams (4)
  5. Sadam Ali (5)
  6. Liam Smith (6)
  7. Kell Brook (7)
  8. Maciej Sulecki (8)
  9. Austin Trout (9)
  10. Tony Harrison (10)

March was the calm before the storm. In April, top-ranked Erislandy Lara and and No. 3 fighter Jarrett Hurd battle for the No. 1 spot. No. 4-ranked Julian Williams is also on the card. Williams is set to meet Nathaniel Gallimore in what should be a fun contest. The winner will be the mandatory challenger for the IBF title currently held by Hurd.

Welterweight (147 Pounds)
  1. Keith Thurman (1)
  2. Errol Spence Jr. (2)
  3. Danny Garcia (3)
  4. Shawn Porter (4)
  5. Jeff Horn (6)
  6. Jessie Vargas (7)
  7. Manny Pacquiao (8)
  8. Lamont Peterson (9)
  9. Sadam Ali (10)
  10. Egidijus Kavaliauskas (10)

No fighters in the top 10 were in action this month, so the rankings remain unchanged.

Jr. Welterweight (140 Pounds)
  1. Terence Crawford (1)
  2. Mikey Garcia (2)
  3. Regis Prograis (7)
  4. Antonio Orozco (4)
  5. Viktor Postol (NR)
  6. Eduard Troyanovsky (6)
  7. Julius Indongo (3)
  8. Sergey Lipinets (8)
  9. Adrien Broner (9)
  10. Jose Carlos Ramirez (NR)

Dropped from the rankings: Adrian Granados (5), John Molina (10)

There’s quite the shakeup this month in the rankings. Regis Prograis may have just proved he hits harder than anyone in the division. Prograis knocked out Julius Indongo in just the second round. With the win, he jumps up four spots to reside at third in the rankings. Mikey Garcia and Sergey Lipinets battled in Texas. Lipinets may have lost the fight, but he comes out with his stock as high as ever for taking the fight to Garcia and hanging tough for 12 rounds. Garcia retains the No. 2 slot in the rankings, while Lipinets holds steady in eighth. Viktor Postol, whose only loss came to the top-ranked Terence Crawford, enters the rankings at No. 5. Pistol replaces Adrian Granados, who drops out of the top 10 following back-to-back losses. Jose Carlos Ramirez, fresh off his win over Amir Imam for the WBC title, enters the rankings at No. 10 and forces John Molina out of the top 10.

Lightweight (135 Pounds)
  1. Jorge Linares (1)
  2. Mikey Garcia (2)
  3. Terry Flanagan (3)
  4. Robert Easter Jr. (4)
  5. Raymundo Beltran (5)
  6. Anthony Crolla (6)
  7. Dejan Zlaticanin (7)
  8. Luke Campbell (8)
  9. Denis Shafikov (9)
  10. Richard Commey (NR)

Dropped from the rankings: Felix Verdejo (10)

On the undercard of the event that featured heavyweights Anthony Joshua and Joshua Parker, No. 6-ranked lightweight Anthony Crolla took a unanimous decision over Edson Ramirez. Richard Commey enters the rankings after a knockout victory over Alejandro Luna. Commey is now the mandatory challenger for Robert Easter Jr.

Jr. Lightweight (130 Pounds)
  1. Vasyl Lomachenko (1)
  2. Miguel Berchelt (2)
  3. Alberto Machado (3)
  4. Gervonta Davis (4)
  5. Francisco Vargas (5)
  6. Jezreel Corrales (6)
  7. Robinson Castellanos (7)
  8. Miguel Roman (8)
  9. Orlando Salido (9)
  10. Jhonny Gonzalez (10)

No fighters in the top 10 were in action this month, so the rankings remain unchanged.

Featherweight (126 Pounds)
  1. Gary Russell Jr. (1)
  2. Leo Santa Cruz (2)
  3. Carl Frampton (3)
  4. Lee Selby (4)
  5. Abner Mares (5)
  6. Oscar Valdez (6)
  7. Scott Quigg (7)
  8. Joseph Diaz Jr. (8)
  9. Jesus Marcelo Andres Cuellar (9)
  10. Jesus Rojas (10)

Oscar Valdez and Scott Quigg battled in the rain at the StubHub Center Center in California. They delivered what may be the early favorite for “Fight of the Year.” Both fighters hold steady in the rankings in the six and seven holes.

Jr. Featherweight (122 Pounds)
  1. Guillermo Rigondeaux (1)
  2. Rey Vargas (2)
  3. Julio Ceja (3)
  4. Ryosuke Iwasa (4)
  5. Jessie Magdaleno (5)
  6. Diego De La Hoya (6)
  7. Daniel Roman (7)
  8. Jonathan Guzman (8)
  9. Moises Flores (9)
  10. Hugo Ruiz (10)

No. 4-ranked Ryosuke Iwasa was the lone junior featherweight fighter in action in March. Iwasa defeated Ernesto Saulong by unanimous decision to retain his IBF crown.

Bantamweight (118 Pounds)
  1. Luis Nery (1)
  2. Ryan Burnett (2)
  3. Shinsuke Yamanaka (3)
  4. Jamie McDonnell (4)
  5. Juan Carlos Payano (5)
  6. Zhanat Zhakiyanov (6)
  7. Zolani Tete (7)
  8. Liborio Solis (8)
  9. Karim Guerfi (9)
  10. Paul Butler (10)

No fighters in the top 10 were in action this month, so the rankings remain unchanged.

Jr. Bantamweight (115 Pounds)
  1. Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (1)
  2. Naoya Inoue (2)
  3. Juan Francisco Estrada (3)
  4. Jerwin Ancajas (4)
  5. Khalid Yafai (5)
  6. Roman Gonzalez (6)
  7. McWilliams Arroyo (7)
  8. Carlos Cuadras (8)
  9. Kohei Kono (9)
  10. Rau’shee Warren (10)

No fighters in the top 10 were in action this month, so the rankings remain unchanged.

Flyweight (112 Pounds)
  1. Donnie Nietes (1)
  2. Kazuto Ioka (2)
  3. Daigo Higa (3)
  4. Juan Carlos Reveco (4)
  5. Artem Dalakian (5)
  6. Francisco Rodriguez Jr. (6)
  7. Sho Kimura (7)
  8. Moruti Mthalane (8)
  9. Yodmongkol Vor Saengthep (9)
  10. Andrew Selby (10)

No fighters in the top 10 were in action this month, so the rankings remain unchanged.

Jr. Flyweight (108 Pounds)
  1. Kosei Tanaka (1)
  2. Ken Shiro (2)
  3. Pedro Guevara (3)
  4. Milan Melindo (4)
  5. Ryoichi Taguchi (5)
  6. Carlos Canizales (6)
  7. Felix Alvarado (7)
  8. Hekkie Budler (8)
  9. Ganigan Lopez (9)
  10. Randy Petalcorin (10)

Carlos Canizales defeated Reiya Konishi to be become the new WBA titleholder. The Venezuelan is now undefeated in his first 21 professional bouts. He remains at No. 6 in the rankings.

Strawweight (105 Pounds)
  1. Wanheng Menayothin (1)
  2. Knockout CP Freshmart (2)
  3. Hiroto Kyoguchi (3)
  4. Byron Rojas (4)
  5. Jose Argumedo (5)
  6. Leroy Estrada (6)
  7. Simphiwe Khonco (7)
  8. Carlos Buitrago (8)
  9. Joey Canoy (9)
  10. Ryuya Yamanaka (10)

Ryuya Yamanaka was the only ranked fighter in action in March. He finished Moises Calleros in the eighth round to remain the WBO titleholder and the No. 10-ranked strawweight.

Pound-for-Pound
  1. Terence Crawford (1)
  2. Vasyl Lomachenko (2)
  3. Gennady Golovkin (3)
  4. Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (4)
  5. Mikey Garcia (5)
  6. Oleksandr Usyk (6)
  7. Guillermo Rigondeaux (7)
  8. Sergey Kovalev (8)
  9. Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (9)
  10. Naoya Inoue (10)

The pound-for-pound rankings remain unchanged despite the win from Mikey Garcia over Sergey Lipinets.


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