In the world of boxing, leading the pound-for-pound rankings is one of the biggest accolades a fighter can earn. These rankings attempt to level the playing field, comparing boxers regardless of their size by judging their overall skill, achievements, and dominance in the squared circle.
There's no single authority figure handing out these titles. Instead, different boxing organizations and media outlets create their own lists, and they can vary a bit from one another. Coming up with these rankings often involves a group of experts with a deep understanding of the sport. These experts, which could be journalists, trainers, or even legendary fighters themselves, consider a boxer's record, the caliber of opponents they've faced, their technical skills, and how they've performed recently. Among the organizations and media outlets that produce pound-for-pound rankings, some of the most well-known include:
The Ring Magazine
Founded in 1922, The Ring is one of the oldest and most respected boxing publications. Their pound-for-pound rankings are widely regarded within the boxing community and carry the most weight.
Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA)
Comprising journalists and writers covering the sport, the BWAA also releases its own pound-for-pound rankings.
ESPN
The sports media giant regularly updates its own pound-for-pound list, featuring analysis from its team of boxing experts and commentators.
BoxRec
While not a traditional media outlet, BoxRec is a widely used online boxing database that computes pound-for-pound rankings based on a mathematical formula that considers factors such as wins, losses, and opponents' rankings.
Men’s Pound-for-Pound Rankings
| Boxer | Record | Weight class | Current world title(s) | Ranker | |||
| The Ring | BWAA | ESPN | BoxRec | ||||
| Naoya Inoue | 27–0 (24 KO) | Super bantamweight | WBC , WBO, WBA (Super), IBF, and The Ring | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| Terence Crawford | 40–0 (31 KO) | Welterweight | WBA (Super), WBC, WBO, and The Ring | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Oleksandr Usyk | 21–0 (13 KO) | Heavyweight | WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, and The Ring | 3 | 3 | 3 | – |
| Canelo Álvarez | 61–2–2 (39 KO) | Super middleweight | WBA (Super), WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Dmitry Bivol | 22–0 (11 KO) | Light heavyweight | WBA (Super) | 6 | 7 | 5 | – |
| Errol Spence Jr. | 28–1 (22 KO) | Welterweight | – | 7 | 5 | – | – |
| Devin Haney | 31–1 (15 KO) | Light welterweight | WBC | – | 10 (tie) | – | – |
| Gervonta Davis | 29–0 (27 KO) | Lightweight | WBA (Regular) | 8 | – | 7 | – |
| Teófimo López | 20–1 (13 KO) | Light welterweight | WBO and The Ring | – | – | – | – |
| Tyson Fury | 34–0–1 (24 KO) | Heavyweight | WBC | – | 6 | 10 | – |
| Artur Beterbiev | 20–0 (20 KO) | Light heavyweight | WBC, IBF, and WBO | 5 | 8 | 6 | 7 |
| Jermell Charlo | 35–1–1 (19 KO) | Light middleweight | The Ring | – | 9 | – | – |
| Shakur Stevenson | 21–0 (10 KO) | Lightweight | WBC | – | 10 (tie) | 8 | 5 |
| Juan Francisco Estrada | 44–3 (28 KO) | Super flyweight | WBC and The Ring | – | – | – | – |
| Jesse Rodriguez | 19–0 (12 KO) | Flyweight | - | 9 | - | 9 | 8 |
| Junto Nakatani | 27–0 (20 KO) | Bantamweight | WBC | 10 | - | – | 3 |
| Kenshiro Teraji | 23–1 (14 KO) | Light-flyweight | WBC, WBA (Super) and The Ring | – | - | – | 6 |
| Emanuel Navarrete | 38–1–1 (31 KO) | Super featherweight | WBO | - | - | – | 9 |
| Subriel Matías | 20–1 (20 KO) | Light welterweight | IBF | - | - | – | 10 |
Women’s Pound-for-Pound Rankings
| Boxer | Record | Weight class | Current world title(s) | Ranker | ||
| The Ring | ESPN | BoxRec | ||||
| Claressa Shields | 14–0 (2 KO) | Middleweight | WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring | 1 | 1 | – |
| Chantelle Cameron | 18–0 (8 KO) | Super lightweight | WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| Katie Taylor | 22–1 (6 KO) | Lightweight | WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| Amanda Serrano | 44–2–1 (30 KO) | Featherweight | WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring | 4 | 3 | 5 |
| Seniesa Estrada | 25–0 (9 KO) | Mini flyweight | WBA, WBC, and The Ring | 5 | 6 | 8 |
| Alycia Baumgardner | 15–1 (7 KO) | Super featherweight | WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring | 6 | 5 | 7 |
| Jessica McCaskill | 12–3 (5 KO) | Welterweight | WBA, WBC, and The Ring | 7 | 8 | – |
| Delfine Persoon | 48–3 (19 KO) | Super featherweight | – | 8 | – | – |
| Natasha Jonas | 14–2–1 (9 KO) | Super welterweightWelterweight | WBC, IBF, WBO, and The RingIBF | 9 | – | – |
| Mikaela Mayer | 18–1 (5 KO) | Lightweight | – | 10 | 7 | 9 |
| Franchón Crews-Dezurn | 8–2 (2 KO) | Super middleweight | – | – | 9 | – |
| Savannah Marshall | 13–1 (10 KO) | Super middleweight | WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring | – | 10 | – |
| Jessica Nery Plata | 29–2 (3 KO) | Light flyweight | WBA (Super) and WBC | – | – | 3 |
| Yokasta Valle | 28–2 (9 KO) | Mini flyweight | IBF and WBO | – | – | 4 |
| Marlen Esparza | 14–1 (1 KO) | Flyweight | WBA, WBC, WBO, and The Ring | – | – | 6 |
| Evelyn Nazarena Bermúdez | 18–1–1 (6 KO) | Light flyweight | IBF and WBO | – | – | 10 |
Last Updated On May 14, 2024
FAQs
A. Naoya Inoue of Japan is considered to be the best pound-for-pound boxer at present.
A. Terence Crawford is ranked #2 by the Ring Magazine and BoxRec in their pound-for-pound rankings. However, Crawford occupies the top spot in the BWAA and ESPN standings.
A. Claressa Shields is the current pound-for-pound female boxer.
A. Canelo Alvarez is ranked #4 in the pound-for-pound rankings by all the major organizations.
