Let’s see where we are now…
The Set Up
Remember, this is a pound for pound ranking. That means it is largely subjective. As long as an argument can be reasoned and understood by a rational mind, it is fair game. I usually value resume over my perception of their abilities, but extreme outliers do exist on the list in regards that evaluation. Feel free to pick it apart.
The format of the rankings goes as follows:
Ranking – Name – Record – Weight Class – Country (Last Ranking)
The List
25. Manny Pacquiao – 60-7-2, 39 KOs – Welterweight – Philippines (UR)
Pacman reminded everyone that he is still a top fighter in the sport with his easy demolition of Lucas Matthysse over the summer. Inactivity is a problem, but the Filipino legend has still not fallen below world level in the sport even at 40.
24. Ken Shiro – 15-0, 8 KOs – Light Flyweight – Japan (UR)
The sport’s top light flyweight had a big 2018 with two dominant knockout wins over a pair of top contenders in Ganigan Lopez and Milan Melindo before finishing the year with a soft touch. Two division titleholder Ken Shiro deserves to be in this list without question.
23. Danny Jacobs – 35-2, 29 KOs – Middleweight – USA (12)
It might look like I am punishing Danny Jacobs with a nine spot drop from the summer for his competitive wins with Maciej Sulecki and Sergiy Derevyanchenko, but really the fighters above him have mostly just solidified their spots. Those were good wins for the middleweight.
22. Shawn Porter – 29-2-1, 17 KOs – Welterweight – USA (22)
Shawn Porter had only one fight in 2018, but it was arguably the best win of his career over Danny Garcia. That is enough to hold his spot in a list where other men were pushed back by other rising fighters.
21. Tyson Fury – 27-0-1, 19 KOs – Heavyweight – England (UR)
It is sort of forgotten that Tyson Fury was the man to dethrone Wladimir Klitschko, not Anthony Joshua. I also though he comfortably beat Deontay Wilder despite the two knockdowns. I can’t argue with those two results.
20. Gary Russell Jr – 29-1, 17 KOs – Featherweight – USA (UR)
My ability to ignore highly talented but part time featherweight titleholder Gary Russell Jr was compromised by a solid win over JoJo Diaz in the spring. Russell is just too gifted to also be coming off a such a solid win and be left out.
19. Leo Santa Cruz – 35-1-1, 19 KOs – Featherweight – Mexico (UR)
While Leo Santa Cruz hasn’t done much notable since winning the Carl Frampton rematch, it was still a big oversight not to include him last time. Hopefully he fights someone who is both a contender and not an already defeated opponent in 2019 at some point.
18. Murat Gassiev – 26-1, 19 KOs – Cruiserweight – Russia (18)
Murat Gassiev’s standing in the sport is actually stronger now with his big win over Yunier Dorticos despite his wide loss to Oleksandr Usyk, but the new faces with big wins (plus that loss) have held him in position at number eighteen.
17. Callum Smith – 25-0, 18 KOs – Super Middleweight – England (UR)
George Groves narrowly snuck into the list last time out. Callum Smith absolutely thrashed him and took his title. It was a huge win that emphatically launched the British fighter in the upper echelons of the sport.
16. Oleksandr Gvozdyk – 16-0, 13 KOs – Light Heavyweight – Ukraine (UR)
Speaking of one huge win catapulting a fighter’s standing, Oleksandr Gvozdyk dramatically ended Adonis Stevenson’s long title reign with an eleventh round finish of his own. The Ukrainian has arrived fully at the top of the sport.
15. Eleider Alvarez – 24-0, 12 KOs – Light Heavyweight – Canada (UR)
Speaking of… Yeah, again. Eleider Alvarez’s one big win was the biggest of all though. Sergey Kovalev had long been considered one of the best fighter’s in the world and was comfortably in this list before. Not anymore. Eleider Alvarez saw to that.
14. Jarrett Hurd – 23-0, 16 KOs – Junior Middleweight – USA (10)
I am a big believer in Jarrett Hurd and what he has accomplished with his exciting style, but injuries held him back from doing anything meaningful recently. A few others have simply passed him by while he stood still.
13. Miguel Berchelt – 35-1, 31 KOs – Junior Lightweight – Mexico (13)
Miguel Berchelt is the third fighter on this list that just happened to end up in the same spot even though I did it from scratch. He just didn’t advance himself in 2018. Micky Roman is a nice win in the grand scheme of wins, but Berchelt was always going to be favored over the brawler in a big way.
12. Kosei Tanaka – 12-0, 7 KOs – Flyweight – Japan (UR)
World titles in three weight classes in twelve fights at 23 years old is as impressive as it gets. His great fight with Sho Kimura this year to get his flyweight belt is a real signature win and two of Tanaka’s defeated opponents have since gone on to win titles of their own. Kosei Tanaka is an elite fighter in the sport.
11. Donnie Nietes – 42-1-5, 23 KOs – Super Flyweight – Philippines (14)
I didn’t see the controversy in Donnie Niete’s fourth world title win over former flyweight king Kazuto Ioka. It was a close fight that could have gone either way. The Filipino is a four weight class world titleholder and hasn’t lost a fight since George W Bush was still in his first term. The fact that he isn’t in the top ten speaks to how strong the sport is right now.
10. Anthony Joshua – 22-0, 21 KOs – Heavyweight – England (10)
Some have issues with heavyweights here, but Joshua’s wins are just too solid to ignore. Dillian Whyte, Wladimir Klitschko, Joseph Parker, and Alexander Povetkin are all true top fighters. The British superstar bested them all in the end.
9. Gennady Golovkin – 38-1-1, 34 KOs – Middleweight – Kazakhstan (4)
He made a lot of money in the end, but it was a rough year for GGG. The Kazakh puncher first lost his initial big pay day in the spring before getting a decision loss at the hands of an aggressive Canelo Alvarez in the fall. I saw no problem with the judge’s verdict, but it isn’t a bad loss anyway.
8. Errol Spence Jr – 24-0, 21 KOs – Welterweight – USA (8)
I suspect Carlos Ocampo might prove to be a good fighter in the end, but for now disposing of his unknown mandatory challenger has just left Errol Spence Jr stagnant like a few other fighters on this list. Those Kell Brook and Lamont Peterson wins still do mean a lot though.
7. Srisaket Sor Rungvisai – 47-4-1, 41 KOs – Super Flyweight – Thailand (6)
Again I feel compelled to use the word “stagnant.” We had some good stuff, but the second half of 2018 was disappointing in some respects. Srisaket Sor Rungvisai just didn’t follow up his big January HBO win over Juan Francisco Estrada with anything meaningful.
6. Canelo Alvarez – 51-1-2, 35 KOs – Middleweight – Ukraine (5)
Canelo Alvarez had the biggest win of his career over Gennady Golovkin and proved that he belongs at the very top of the sport. He fell a spot in these rankings only as a technicality when I moved someone else way up. The Mexican superstar is in a stronger position than he was last time.
5. Oleksandr Usyk – 16-0, 12 KOs – Cruiserweight – Ukraine (7)
What a year it was for Oleksandr Usyk. The Ukrainian confirmed his position as cruiserweight king by winning the World Boxing Super Series and all four titles with a virtuoso performance over an expected to be competitive Murat Gassiev before stopping a really good Tony Bellew. All that is left is heavyweight.
4. Mikey Garcia – 39-0, 31 KOs – Lightweight – USA (3)
Mikey Garcia is an incredible technician. His easy win over Robert Easter Jr wasn’t Earth shattering, but it was a solid reminder of his craft. Though Garcia is entering what I see as a fool’s errand to move up two weight classes to meet a dynamo like Errol Spence Jr, the fight does present him with an opportunity to climb higher in everyone’s P4P lists if he can pull it off.
3. Naoya Inoue – 17-0, 15 KOs – Bantamweight – Japan (11)
I know. You’re angry that I put Monster Inoue at number three. I just can’t deny it anymore. I can’t rationalize him back on the list to make people happy. Naoya Inoue is the most physically gifted fighter active in the sport. His skills are excellent too. This placement is as simple as the fact that I am confident that he is currently at worst the third best fighter in the sport right now. I’ve been watching this sport too long to deny my eyes. Inoue is even closer to the top two than he is to Mikey Garcia at four. I am a firm believer.
2. Terence Crawford – 34-0, 25 KOs – Welterweight – USA (2)
I have long thought that Bud Crawford and the obvious number one here were largely interchangeable at the top of this list, but not anymore. The Omaha favorite was great against Horn and Benavidez, sure, but it was the man ranked ahead of him who truly got the one signature win to separate the two Top Rank fighters.
1. Vasyl Lomachenko – 12-1, 9 KOs – Lightweight – Ukraine (1)
You knew it was coming and here it is. I used to go back and forth on which of the two men to put here. Since Vasily Lomachenko stopped top lightweight Jorge Linares, however, it has no longer been difficult to separate who exactly the sport’s top pound for pound fighter is. The answer is clear and it is Loma.
