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)
- Alexander Povetkin (5)
- Jarrell Miller (6)
- Kubrat Pulev (7)
- Dillian Whyte (8)
- Andy Ruiz Jr. (9)
- Carlos Takam (10)
No fighters in the top 10 were in action this month, so the rankings remain unchanged.
- 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)
No fighters in the top 10 were in action this month, so the rankings remain unchanged.
- Adonis Stevenson (1)
- Sergey Kovalev (2)
- Eleider Alvarez (3)
- Badou Jack (4)
- Oleksandr Gvozdyk (5)
- Artur Beterbiev (6)
- Dmitry Bivol (7)
- Sullivan Barrera (8)
- Marcus Browne (9)
- Joe Smith Jr. (10)
Joe Smith Jr. was the lone fighter in action. In a stay-busy fight, Smith defeated Melvin Russell by knockout. Russell, 39, came in with a 11-4-2 record, and his previous win was against a fighter with a 2-9 record. It was incompetence by the commission in even getting this fight cleared.
- Gilberto Ramirez (1)
- George Groves (2)
- James DeGale (3)
- Chris Eubank Jr. (4)
- Anthony Dirrell (5)
- Callum Smith (6)
- Jose Uzcategui (7)
- David Benavidez (8)
- Tyron Zeuge (9)
- Jesse Hart (10)
Gilberto Ramirez successfully defended his WBO title with a unanimous decision over Roamer Alexis Angulo. It wasn’t Ramirez’s finest performance, but he maintains his ranking with the victory.
- Gennady Golovkin (1)
- Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (2)
- Daniel Jacobs (3)
- Billy Joe Saunders (4)
- Jermall Charlo (5)
- David Lemieux (6)
- Sergiy Derevyanchenko (7)
- Avtandil Khurtsidze (8)
- Ryota Murata (9)
- Demetrius Andrade (10)
No fighters in the top 10 were in action this month, so the rankings remain unchanged.
- Jarrett Hurd (1)
- Erislandy Lara (2)
- Jermell Charlo (3)
- Julian Williams (4)
- Liam Smith (5)
- Kell Brook (6)
- Amir Khan (7)
- Maciej Sulecki (8)
- Austin Trout (9)
- Jaime Munguia (10)
Austin Trout proved to be a sturdy test for Jermell Charlo, but the Houston native still emerged victorious to remain undefeated. Both fighters stay put in the rankings.
- Keith Thurman (1)
- Errol Spence Jr. (2)
- Terence Crawford (NR)
- Danny Garcia (3)
- Shawn Porter (4)
- Jeff Horn (5)
- Jessie Vargas (6)
- Manny Pacquiao (7)
- Lamont Peterson (8)
- Sadam Ali (9)
Dropped from the rankings: Egidijus Kavaliauskas (10)
There’s a new entry in the top 10. Terence Crawford made his debut at 147 pounds and made easy work of Jeff Horn. Crawford won via TKO in round nine. He was never challenged by Horn in the fight, but it would be disrespectful to immediately insert him at No. 1 over Keith Thurman and Errol Spence Jr., who have proven themselves more in this division. As a result, Crawford lands in third, with Egidijus Kavaliauskas falling out of the rankings.
- Mikey Garcia (2)
- Regis Prograis (3)
- Josh Taylor (NR)
- Antonio Orozco (4)
- Viktor Postol (5)
- Eduard Troyanovsky (6)
- Julius Indongo (7)
- Sergey Lipinets (8)
- Adrien Broner (9)
- Jose Carlos Ramirez (10)
Dropped from the rankings: Terence Crawford (1)
With Terence Crawford officially moving up to 147 pounds, there is a shakeup in the top 10 at 140 pounds. Mikey Garcia assumes the No. 1 spot, while newcomer Josh Taylor immediately jumps all the way up at No. 3 after his win over Viktor Postol on June 23 in Glasgow, Scotland. Expect these rankings to be quite different in less than a year with the World Boxing Super Series choosing to go ahead with a junior welterweight tournament that begins later this year.
- Mikey Garcia (1)
- Vasyl Lomachenko (2)
- Jorge Linares (3)
- Robert Easter (4)
- Raymundo Beltran (5)
- Anthony Crolla (6)
- Luke Campbell (8)
- Richard Commey (10)
- Jose Pedraza (NR)
- Lewis Ritson (NR)
Dropped from the rankings: Terry Flanagan (4), Dejan Zlaticanin (7)
It’s been a rough trek for Dejan Zlaticanin, who was knocked out and upset by Roberto Ramirez on June 21. That’s now two defeats in his past three performances. As a result, Zlaticanin falls from the top 10. Terry Flanagan has also been removed after moving up to junior welterweight. This allows two new entrants — Jose Pedraza and Lewis Ritson — into the rankings.
- 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)
Both Miguel Berchelt and Miguel Roman were in action in June. Each man walked away with a convincing win to remain in their spots in the rankings.
- Gary Russell Jr. (1)
- Leo Santa Cruz (2)
- Carl Frampton (3)
- Abner Mares (4)
- Oscar Valdez (5)
- Scott Quigg (6)
- Josh Warrington (7)
- Lee Selby (8)
- Joseph Diaz Jr. (9)
- Jesus Marcelo Andres Cuellar (10)
In June, two of the best featherweights in the world went toe-to-toe. Abner Mares challenged Leo Santa Cruz in a rematch. Santa Cruz proved to be too skilled once again. He defeated Mares via unanimous decision in an action-packed contest. There’s no shame in the defeat for Mares, who holds onto his spot in the rankings. Santa Cruz remains at No. 2, with Gary Russell Jr. still reigning supreme.
- Guillermo Rigondeaux (1)
- Rey Vargas (2)
- Isaac Dogboe (3)
- Ryosuke Iwasa (4)
- Jessie Magdaleno (5)
- Diego De La Hoya (6)
- Daniel Roman (7)
- Moises Flores (9)
- Emanuel Navarrete (10)
- Gavin McDonnell (NR)
Dropped from the rankings: Jonathan Guzman (8)
Diego De La Hoya was victorious in his bout against Jose Salgado, and Daniel Roman defeated fellow ranked competitor Moises Flores. It was the first defeat of Flores’ professional career. Jonathan Guzman has been removed from the rankings due to inactivity. He has not fought since December 2016. Due to Guzman’s removal, Gavin McDonnell makes his debut in the poll. McDonnell was victorious in June with a decision nod over Stuart Hall.
- Luis Nery (1)
- Ryan Burnett (2)
- Naoya Inoue (3)
- Jamie McDonnell (4)
- Juan Carlos Payano (5)
- Zhanat Zhakiyanov (6)
- Emmanuel Rodriguez (7)
- Zolani Tete (8)
- Paul Butler (10)
- Jason Moloney (NR)
Dropped from the rankings: Liborio Solis (9)
Liborio Solis is on a losing skid that has now led to his removal from the top 10. His misfortune is another’s gain, with Jason Moloney now stepping into the No. 10 spot.
- Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (1)
- Juan Francisco Estrada (3)
- Jerwin Ancajas (4)
- Khalid Yafai (5)
- Roman Gonzalez (6)
- McWilliams Arroyo (7)
- Carlos Cuadras (8)
- Rau’shee Warren (10)
- Francisco Rodriguez Jr. (NR)
- Rex Tso (NR)
Dropped from the rankings: Naoya Inoue (2), Kohei Kono (9)
Kohei Kono remains on a losing skid, even after a move up to bantamweight. As a result, he falls from the rankings. Naoya Inoue is now competing at bantamweight and therefore relinquishes his place among the top 10 at junior bantamweight. Two new spots open up as a result, and those slots are filled by Francisco Rodriguez Jr., who debuts at No. 9 after a successful move up to junior bantamweight, and Rex Tso.
- Donnie Nietes (1)
- Kazuto Ioka (2)
- Juan Carlos Reveco (3)
- Cristofer Rosales (4)
- Daigo Higa (5)
- Artem Dalakian (6)
- Sho Kimura (8)
- Moruti Mthalane (9)
- Andrew Selby (10)
- Vincent Legrand (NR)
Dropped from the rankings: Francisco Rodriguez Jr. (7)
The removal of Francisco Rodriguez Jr., who has moved up a division, opens the way for Vincent Legrand to claim the No. 10 spot.
- Ken Shiro (1)
- Pedro Guevara (2)
- Milan Melindo (3)
- Hekkie Budler (4)
- Ryoichi Taguchi(5)
- Carlos Canizales (6)
- Felix Alvarado (7)
- Ganigan Lopez (8)
- Randy Petalcorin (9)
- Angel Acosta (10)
Angel Acosta was the lone fighter in action in June. Acosta earned a TKO victory over Carlos Buitrago in the 12th round of their championship fight.
- 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.