Americans Still Tops in Pro Boxing
By Teodoro Medina Reynoso
PhilBoxing.com
Fri, 10 Sep 2021
Pound for pound American fighters Errol Spence Jnr and Terrence Crawford.
Crowded out in their traditional bailiwick in the heavyweight and the cruiserweight classes, American fighters though still dominate global professional boxing with a total of 18 world champions in the light heavyweight down to the super flyweight divisions as per latest listings of the four major sanctioning bodies (WBC, WBA, IBF and the WBO.
The US is led by unified WBA-IBF-WBO lightweight champion Teofimo Lopez who is of Dominican Republic origin and unified WBC-WBA-WBO super welterweight titlist Jermell Charlo. The heaviest American world boxing champion currently is Joe Smith who holds the WBO light heavyweight title.
The other American world champions are WBC-IBF welterweight titleholder Errol Spence, WBO welterweight titlist Terrence Crawford, WBC lightweight champion Devin Haney, middleweight ruler Jermall Charlo, WBO middleweight titleholder Demetrius Andrade, IBF super middleweight titlist Caleb Plant, WBO junior lightweight ruler Jamel Herring, WBC featherweight ruler Gary Russell, Jr. WBO super bantamweight champion Stephen Fulton and WBA super bantamweight titlist Brandon Figueroa.
Also holding world boxing titles on regular capacity under declared super champions are Gervonta Tank Davis (WBA lightweight and WBA super lightweight), Jamal James (WBA regular welterweight) Trevor Bryant (WBA heavyweight) and Joshua Franco ( WBA super flyweight).
The US also has one interim world champion in Shakur Stevenson (WBO junior lightweight).
United Kingdom comes next with eight, namely WBA-IBF-WBO unified heavyweight titlist Anthony Joshua, WBC and Ring Magazine heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, WBO cruiserweight ruler Lawrence Okolie, undisputed world super lightweight king Josh Taylor, IBF featherweight titlist Kid Galahad, WBO flyweight champion Sunny Edwards, WBA regular featherweight titleholder Leigh Wood and WBC interim heavyweight champion Dillian Whyte.
Mexico has seven namely unified WBC-WBA-WBO and Ring Magazine super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez, WBC super featherweight titlist Oscar Valdez, WBC featherweight titlist Leo Santacruz, WBO featherweight titlist Emanuel Navarette, WBC-WBA unified and Ring Magazine super flyweight champion Juan Francisco Estrada, WBC flyweight ruler Julio Cesar Martinez and IBF light flyweight titlist Elwin Soto.
Japan has six namely: WBA middleweight champion Ryota Murata, WBA super and IBF bantamweight titleholder Naoya Inoue, WBO super flyweight champion Kazuto Ioka, IBF flyweight titlist Junto Nakatani, WBC and Ring Magazine light flyweight king Hiroto Kyoguchi and WBC light flyweight ruler Kenshiro Teraji.
The Philippines likewise has six but only five are regular world champions, namely: WBC bantamweight champion Nonito Donaire, WBO bantamweight ruler Johnriel Casimero, IBF super flyweight titlist Jerwin Ancajas, WBA minimumweight champion Vic Saludar, and IBF minimumweight titleholder Rene Cuarto. Rey Gaballo is the WBC interim bantamweight champion.
Cuba has three, namely WBA regular middleweight titlist Erislandy Lara, WBA world welterweight super champion Yordenis Ugas and WBA regular super middleweight titlist David Morrell.
Russia has two: WBC cruiserweight champion Dmitri Bivol and WBA-IBF cruiserweight king Artur Beterbiev.
Thailand likewise have two in WBA minimumweight super champion Thamanon Niyomtrong and WBC minimumweight titleholder Panya Prabsdri.
The rest is distributed among Nicaragua (WBO light flyweight champion Felix Alvarado), Ukraine (WBA flyweight champion Artem Dalakian), Venezuela (WBA super lightweight champion Roger Gutierrez), Kazakhstan ( WBO middleweight titlist Gennady Golovkin), France ( WBA cruiserweight super champion Arsen Goumalirian), Belgium (Ryad Merhy), Latvia (IBF and Ring Magazine unified cruiserweight champion Mairis Breidis), Democratic Republic of Congo (WBC cruiserweight champion Ilunga Makabu) and Uzbekistan (WBC-IBF super bantamweight champion Murodjon Akhmadaliev).
The author Teodoro Medina Reynoso is a veteran boxing radio talk show host living in the Philippines. He can be reached at teddyreynoso@yahoo.com and by phone 09215309477.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Teodoro Medina Reynoso.
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