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.
- Deontay Wilder (1)
- Tyson Fury (2)
- Anthony Joshua (4)
- Andy Ruiz (3)
- Luis Ortiz (5)
- Dillian Whyte (6)
- Alexander Povetkin (7)
- Kubrat Pulev (8)
- Joseph Parker (9)
- Adam Kownacki (10)
Anthony Joshua got his revenge over Andy Ruiz, cruising to a unanimous decision in the pair’s rematch. Ruiz came in well over his normal fight weight, and there were plenty of reports that he barely trained for this bout. It showed. Joshua kept his distance and used great footwork to put away any doubt that he would lose back-to-back fights to Ruiz.
- Murat Gassiev (1)
- Mairis Briedis (2)
- Denis Lebedev (3)
- Yunier Dorticos (4)
- Ilunga Makabu (5)
- Krzystztof Glowacki (6)
- Krzysztof Wlodarczyk (7)
- Kevin Lerena (8)
- Lawrence Okolie (9)
- Noel Gevor (10)
No fighters in the top 10 were in action during the past month, so the rankings remain unchanged.
- Artur Beterbiev (1)
- Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (2)
- Sergey Kovalev (3)
- Oleksandr Gvovdyk (4)
- Eleider Alvarez (5)
- Dmitry Bivol (6)
- Jean Pascal (10)
- Badou Jack (7)
- Gilberto Ramirez (8)
- Jesse Hart (9)
Jean Pascal is still picking up big wins. This time, he defeated Badou Jack via split decision in a great fight to finish up 2019. The win vaults Pascal up to No. 7, with Jack sliding down a spot to eighth.
- Callum Smith (1)
- Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (3)
- David Benavidez (4)
- Billy Joe Saunders (5)
- Caleb Plant (7)
- Daniel Jacobs (-)
- Anthony Dirrell (8)
- John Ryder (10)
- Willie Monroe Jr. (-)
- Rocky Fielding (-)
Dropped from the rankings: Chris Eubank Jr. (2), James DeGale (6), Jose Uzcategui (9)
New year, new look for the rankings in the super-middleweight division. James DeGale is bounced for inactivity. Jose Uzcategui falls from the top 10 after an upset loss to Lionell Thompson. Chris Eubank Jr. moved down in weight, which causes him to depart the super-middleweight rankings. This means three new entrants into the polls. Daniel Jacobs, Willie Monroe Jr. and Rocky Fielding join the top 10 this month. Jacobs debuted at 168 pounds in December and defeated Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. This leads to a jump straight to No. 6 for Jacobs. Monroe has been an on-again, off-again presence here, as has Fielding.
- Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (1)
- Gennady Golovkin (2)
- Jermall Charlo (4)
- Demetrius Andrade (6)
- Sergiy Derevyanchenko (7)
- Ryota Murata (8)
- Chris Eubank Jr. (-)
- Jeff Horn (-)
- Michael Zefara (9)
- Maciej Sulecki (10)
Dropped from the rankings: Daniel Jacobs (3), David Lemieux (5)
Much like the super-middleweight division, 160 pounds is severely lacking in depth, especially with Daniel Jacobs moving up in weight. David Lemieux also departs the rankings due to inactivity within the division. Chris Eubank Jr. joins the top 10 after dropping down in weight and picking up a TKO victory over Matvey Korobov. The Brit gives the division a much-needed talent boost. Jeff Horn returns to the rankings in eighth after his rematch win over Michael Zefara.
- Julian Williams(1)
- Jarrett Hurd (2)
- Erislandy Lara (3)
- Jaime Munguia (4)
- Jermell Charlo (7)
- Tony Harrison (6)
- Kell Brook (5)
- Liam Smith (8)
- Brian Carlos Castano (9)
- Michel Soro (10)
Jermell Charlo got his belt back with a knockout of Tony Harrison in the 11th round of their rematch. Both fighters leapfrog Kell Brook, who has been way too inactive lately. Brook does have a February bout coming up, though.
- Terence Crawford (1)
- Errol Spence Jr. (2)
- Shawn Porter (3)
- Manny Pacquiao (4)
- Keith Thurman (5)
- Danny Garcia (6)
- Jessie Vargas (7)
- Sergey Lipinets (8)
- Yordenis Ugas (9)
- Kudratillo Abdukakhorov (10)
Terence Crawford had to deal with a bit of adversity, but nonetheless still picked up a TKO win over Egidijus Kavaliauskas. He retains his No. 1 spot. It looks like a showdown between Crawford and Shawn Porter might happen in 2020.
- Josh Taylor (1)
- Regis Prograis (2)
- Jose Carlos Ramirez (3)
- Viktor Postol (4)
- Maurice Hooker (5)
- Kiryl Relikh (6)
- Ivan Baranchyk (7)
- Jack Catterall (8)
- Mohamed Mimoune (9)
- Jose Zepeda (10)
No fighters in the top 10 were in action during the past month, so the rankings remain unchanged.
- Vasyl Lomachenko (1)
- Teofimo Lopez (8)
- Luke Campbell (3)
- Emmanuel Tagoe (4)
- Richard Commey (2)
- Devin Haney (5)
- Gervonta Davis (-)
- Rances Barthelemy (6)
- Javier Fortuna (9)
- Lee Selby (10)
Dropped from the rankings: Yuriorkis Gamboa (7)
Teofimo Lopez made it look easy by knocking out Richard Commey to set up an anticipated bout with Vasyl Lomachencko. Lopez vaults to No.2. Gervonta Davis moved up in weight and knocked out Yurorkis Gamboa. Davis joins the rankings at No. 6, with Gamboa dropping from the top 10.
- Miguel Berchelt (1)
- Leo Santa Cruz (3)
- Francisco Vargas (4)
- Miguel Roman (5)
- Tevin Farmer (6)
- Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov (7)
- Joseph Diaz Jr. (8)
- Jamel Herring (9)
- Rene Alvarado (10)
- Masayuki Ito (-)
Dropped from the rankings: Gervonta Davis (2)
Gervonta Davis moved up in weight and therefore departs the junior-lightweight top 10. This clears the way for a familiar entrant in Masayuki Ito.
- Gary Russell Jr. (1)
- Josh Warrington (2)
- Carl Frampton (3)
- Abner Mares (4)
- Oscar Valdez (5)
- Can Xu (7)
- Tugstsogt Nyambayar (8)
- Shakur Stevenson (9)
- Jessie Magdaleno (-)
- Claudior Marrero (-)
Dropped from the rankings: Scott Quigg (6), Jhack Tepora (10)
Barely knew ya, Jhack Tepora. The Fillipino was upset by Oscar Escandon and falls out of the rankings just one month after entering them. Scott Quigg departs the poll due to inactivity. In their place, Jessie Magdaleno, who has found success after moving up in weight earlier this year, and Claudio Marrero join the rankings.
- Guillermo Rigondeaux (1)
- Rey Vargas (2)
- Emanuel Navarette (3)
- Daniel Roman (4)
- Isaac Dogboe (5)
- TJ Doheny (6)
- Ryosuke Iwasa (8)
- Ronny Rios (9)
- Brandon Figueroa (10)
- Azat Hovhannisyan (-)
Dropped from the rankings: Jessie Magdaleno (7)
Jessie Magdaleno departs the junior-featherweight top 10 after moving up in weight. This allows Azat Hovhannisyan to enter at No. 10.
- Naoya Inoue (1)
- Luis Nery (2)
- Jamie McDonnell (3)
- Emmanuel Rodriguez (4)
- Nonito Donaire (5)
- Jason Maloney (6)
- Nordine Oubaali (7)
- John Riel Casimero (8)
- Zolani Tete (9)
- Takuma Inoue (10)
No fighters in the top 10 were in action during the past month, so the rankings remain unchanged.
- Juan Francisco Estrada (1)
- Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (2)
- Jerwin Ancajas (3)
- Khalid Yafai (4)
- Roman Gonzalez (5)
- Donnie Nietes (6)
- Kazuto Ioka (7)
- Carlos Cuadras (8)
- Andrew Maloney (9)
- Francisco Rodriguez Jr. (10)
Kazuto Ioka scored a decision victory over Jeyvier Cintron on New Year’s Eve in Japan. This division has tons of talent, and a rematch for Ioka with Donnie Nietes would be appropriate following the controversial split decision that went against Ioka in the pair’s last encounter.
- Charlie Edwards (1)
- Julio Cesar Martinez Aguilar (7)
- Cristofer Rosales (2)
- Artem Dalakian (3)
- Kosei Tanaka (4)
- Sho Kimura (5)
- Moruti Mthalane (6)
- McWilliams Arroyo (8)
- Andrew Selby (9)
- Junto Nakatani (10)
Julio Cesar Martinez Aguilar’s thrashing of Cristofer Rosales leads to a big bump up to the No. 2 spot for Aguilar.
- Ken Shiro (1)
- Hiroto Kyoguchi (2)
- Hekkie Budler (3)
- Carlos Canizales (4)
- Elwin Soto (5)
- Angel Acosta (6)
- Felix Alvarado (7)
- Edward Heno (8)
- Daniel Valladares (9)
- Tetsuya Hisada (10)
No fighters in the top 10 were in action during the past month, so the rankings remain unchanged.
- Wanheng Menayothin (1)
- Knockout CP Freshmart (2)
- Byron Rojas (3)
- Jose Argumedo (4)
- Leroy Estrada (5)
- Simphiwe Khonco (6)
- Joey Canoy (7)
- Melvin Jerusalem (8)
- Wilfredo Mendez (9)
- Vic Saludar (10)
No fighters in the top 10 were in action during the past month, so the rankings remain unchanged.
- Terence Crawford (1)
- Vasyl Lomachenko (2)
- Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (3)
- Naoya Inoue (4)
- Oleksandr Usyk (5)
- Gennady Golovkin (6)
- Errol Spence Jr. (7)
- Mikey Garcia (8)
- Juan Francisco Estrada (9)
- Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (10)
Crawford keeps his top spot in the pound-for-pound rankings following his win over Egidijus Kavaliauskas.