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.
- Anthony Joshua (1)
- Deontay Wilder (2)
- Luis Ortiz (3)
- Joseph Parker (4)
- Kubrat Pulev (5)
- Alexander Povetkin (6)
- Jarrell Miller (7)
- Dillian Whyte (8)
- Andy Ruiz Jr. (9)
- Carlos Takam (10)
Deontay Wilder and Luis Ortiz delivered what was easily the best heavyweight fight since last year’s bout between Anthony Joshua and Wladimir Klitschko. Wilder’s power proved to be too much for Ortiz, as the champ finished the Cuban in the 10th round. Both fighters hold steady in the rankings, but Wilder is inching closer to the top spot held by Joshua, who fights Joseph Parker at the end of the month.
- Oleksandr Usyk (1)
- Murat Gassiev (2)
- Mairis Briedis (3)
- Denis Lebedev (4)
- Krzysztof Glowacki (5)
- Yunier Dorticos (6)
- Ilunga Makabu (7)
- Krzysztof Wlodarczyk (8)
- Maksim Vlasov (9)
- Dmitry Kudryashov (10)
The WBSS finals are officially set, as Murat Gassiev defeated Yunier Dorticos via stoppage to kick off the month of February. Gassiev remains the No. 2-ranked fighter in the division and will face off against No. 1 fighter Oleksandr Usyk on May 11 in Saudi Arabia. Maksim Vlasov and Krzysztof Glowacki also were in action in February and won their respective bouts.
- Adonis Stevenson (1)
- Sergey Kovalev (2)
- Eleider Alvarez (3)
- Oleksandr Gvozdyk (4)
- Artur Beterbiev (5)
- Dmitry Bivol (6)
- Badou Jack (7)
- Sullivan Barrera (8)
- Marcus Browne (9)
- Joe Smith Jr. (10)
Sergey Kovalev made easy work of challenger Igor Mikhalkin with a seventh-round TKO finish. Dmitry Bivol and Sullivan Barrera fought in the co-headliner of the same card, with Bivol continuing to impress. Bivol defeated Barrera by TKO to move all the way up to the sixth spot in the rankings. Barrera drops to eighth, with Badou Jack taking over the No. 7 slot.
- Gilberto Ramirez (1)
- George Groves (2)
- James DeGale (4)
- Chris Eubank Jr. (3)
- Anthony Dirrell (5)
- Callum Smith (6)
- Jose Uzcategui (NR)
- David Benavidez (8)
- Tyron Zeuge (9)
- Caleb Truax (10)
Dropped from the rankings: Andre Dirrell (7)
Gilberto Ramirez dismantled Habib Ahmed to retain his place as the top fighter in the division. George Groves bested Chris Eubank Jr. to advance to the WBSS Tournament finals, where he will face Callum Smith. Smith beat late-notice replacement Nieky Holzken. David Benavidez defeated Ronald Gavril in their rematch. The newest addition to the rankings is Jose Uzcategui, who finished Andre Dirrell. As a result, Dirrell falls out of the top 10 completely.
- Gennady Golovkin (1)
- Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (2)
- Daniel Jacobs (3)
- Billy Joe Saunders (4)
- David Lemieux (5)
- Jermall Charlo (6)
- Sergiy Derevyanchenko (7)
- Avtandil Khurtsidze (9)
- Ryoto Murata (10)
- Demetrius Andrade (NR)
Dropped from the rankings: Andy Lee (8)
Andy Lee announced his retirement from the sport of boxing. The Irishman was an entertaining fighter and all class, and we wish him the best. His retirement made way for Demetrius Andrade to enter the rankings. Sergiy Derevyanchenko continued to look like an absolute beast. His presence makes the division that much more stacked. February also gave us the long-awaited fight announcement of a rematch between Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin.
- Erislandy Lara (1)
- Jermell Charlo (2)
- Jarrett Hurd (3)
- Julian Williams (5)
- Sadam Ali (6)
- Liam Smith (7)
- Kell Brook (NR)
- Maciej Sulecki (8)
- Austin Trout (9)
- Tony Harrison (10)
Dropped from the Rankings: Demetrius Andrade (4)
Austin Trout and Tony Harrison both returned to action in February and picked up wins in their respective bouts. Due to Demetrius Andrade’s inactivity as as a junior middleweight and what seems to be a permanent move to middleweight, he drops from the rankings. This allows for a new entrant into the top 10. Kell Brook has made the decision to continue his career full-time in the weight class and jumps all the way up to No. 7.
- Keith Thurman (1)
- Errol Spence Jr. (2)
- Danny Garcia (3)
- Shawn Porter (4)
- Jeff Horn (6)
- Jessie Vargas (7)
- Manny Pacquiao (8)
- Lamont Peterson (9)
- Sadam Ali (10)
- Egidijus Kavaliauskas (NR)
Dropped from the rankings: Kell Brook (5)
Danny Garcia defeated Brandon Rios in a Showtime Boxing headliner to maintain his spot in the rankings. With Kell Brook’s move to junior middleweight, he drops from the welterweight rankings. Egidijus Kavaliauskas enters at No. 10
- Terence Crawford (1)
- Mikey Garcia (2)
- Julius Indongo (3)
- Antonio Orozco (4)
- Adrian Granados (5)
- Eduard Troyanovsky (6)
- Regis Prograis (7)
- Sergey Lipinets (8)
- Adrien Broner (9)
- John Molina (10)
No fighters in the top 10 were in action this month, so the rankings remain unchanged.
- Jorge Linares (1)
- Mikey Garcia (2)
- Terry Flanagan (3)
- Robert Easter Jr. (4)
- Raymundo Beltran (6)
- Anthony Crolla (5)
- Dejan Zlaticanin (7)
- Luke Campbell (8)
- Denis Shafikov (9)
- Felix Verdejo (10)
Raymundo Beltran moves up to No. 5 after becoming the WBO lightweight champion in February.
- Vasyl Lomachenko (1)
- Miguel Berchelt (2)
- Alberto Machado (3)
- Gervonta Davis (4)
- Francisco Vargas (5)
- Jezreel Corrales (6)
- Robinson Castellanos (7)
- Miguel Roman (8)
- Orlando Salido (9)
- Jhonny Gonzalez (10)
No fighters in the top 10 were in action this month, so the rankings remain unchanged.
- Gary Russell Jr. (1)
- Leo Santa Cruz (2)
- Carl Frampton (3)
- Lee Selby (4)
- Abner Mares (5)
- Oscar Valdez (6)
- Scott Quigg (7)
- Joseph Diaz Jr. (8)
- Jesus Marcelo Andres Cuellar (9)
- Jesus Rojas (10)
Joseph Diaz Jr. won by knockout over Victor Terrazas and remains the No. 8-ranked fighter in the featherweight division.
- Guillermo Rigondeaux (1)
- Rey Vargas (2)
- Julio Ceja (3)
- Ryosuke Iwasa (4)
- Jessie Magdaleno (5)
- Diego De La Hoya (6)
- Daniel Roman (7)
- Jonathan Guzman (8)
- Moises Flores (9)
- Hugo Ruiz (10)
No fighters in the top 10 were in action this month, so the rankings remain unchanged.
- Luis Nery (1)
- Ryan Burnett (2)
- Shinsuke Yamanaka (3)
- Jamie McDonnell (4)
- Juan Carlos Payano (5)
- Zhanat Zhakiyanov (6)
- Zolani Tete (7)
- Liborio Solis (8)
- Karim Guerfi (9)
- Paul Butler (10)
Luis Nery and Shinsuke Yamanaka held their rematch, and there was more drama. Nery failed to make weight and was stripped of his title. However, he won the bout and will be given one more opportunity to prove he can make 118 pounds before being removed from the rankings.
- Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (1)
- Naoya Inoue (2)
- Juan Francisco Estrada (3)
- Jerwin Ancajas (4)
- Khalid Yafai (5)
- Roman Gonzalez (6)
- McWilliams Arroyo (NR)
- Carlos Cuadras (7)
- Kohei Kono (8)
- Rau’shee Warren (9)
Dropped from the rankings: Sho Ishida (10)
Srisaket Sor Rungvisai is good. Really good. And on HBO’s superfly card, he was able to prove this once again in front of a wide audience. Sor Rungvisai defeated No. 3-ranked fighter Juan Francisco Estrada in a 12-round classic. We also have a new entrant into the rankings, as McWilliams Arroyo upset Carlos Cuadras on the same card to enter at No. 7.
- Donnie Nietes (2)
- Kazuto Ioka (1)
- Daigo Higa (3)
- Juan Carlos Reveco (4)
- Artem Dalakian (NR)
- Francisco Rodriguez Jr. (5)
- Sho Kimura (6)
- Moruti Mthalane (7)
- Yodmongkol Vor Saengthep (8)
- Andrew Selby (9)
Dropped from the rankings: Vincent Legrand (10)
Superfly II delivered the brilliance of Donnie Nietes. Nietes knocked out Juan Carlos Reveco in the seventh round and now is the No. 1 fighter in the division. Artem Dalakian jumps into the rankings at No. 5 after cruising to a decision victory over Brian Viloria.
- Kosei Tanaka (1)
- Ken Shiro (2)
- Pedro Guevara (3)
- Milan Melindo (4)
- Ryoichi Taguchi (5)
- Carlos Canizales (6)
- Felix Alvarado (7)
- Hekkie Budler (8)
- Ganigan Lopez (9)
- Randy Petalcorin (10)
No fighters in the top 10 were in action this month, so the rankings remain unchanged.
- Wanheng Menayothin (1)
- Knockout CP Freshmart (2)
- Hiroto Kyoguchi (3)
- Byron Rojas (4)
- Jose Argumedo (5)
- Leroy Estrada (6)
- Simphiwe Khonco (7)
- Carlos Buitrago (8)
- Joey Canoy (9)
- Ryuya Yamanaka (10)
No fighters in the top 10 were in action this month, so the rankings remain unchanged.
- Terence Crawford (1)
- Vasyl Lomachenko (2)
- Gennady Golovkin (3)
- Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (4)
- Mikey Garcia (5)
- Oleksandr Usyk (6)
- Guillermo Rigondeaux (7)
- Sergey Kovalev (8)
- Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (9)
- Naoya Inoue (10)
The pound-for-pound rankings remain unchanged despite the performances from Kovalev and Sor Rungvisai.