It's official: the boxing and calendar year is half over.
And with 2024 now more than halfway over, it only made sense for the B/R Fighting Team to reconvene to discuss recent happenings in the ring and where some of the best fighters stand against each other.
Late June was a busy month for the division, as three fighters who entered the rankings last month won, two of whom kept their rankings while the third moved up in the rankings to replace another fighter who fought and won earlier last month.
As always, the team racked their brains and consulted some trusted sources, including: ring And others will craft their definitive collections for July.
Check out what we came up with and let us know your thoughts in the comments section.
Weight class: 168 pounds
Main titles: none
David Benavidez has built quite a resume since turning pro a little over a decade ago, winning 29 straight bouts, knocking out 24 opponents and being reigned as the WBC super middleweight champion twice.
But his inability to beat cinnamon-haired Canelo Alvarez at 168 pounds may prompt him to make a full move to 175, where he made his debut on June 15 with a wide margin of victory over former title challenger Oleksandr Gvozdyk.
Weight class: 115 pounds
Main titles: White blood cell count
Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce you to the future of boxing in America.
His name is Jesse Rodriguez, his nickname is “Bam,” and he's the most exciting lightweight fighter the United States has produced in a long time.
The 24-year-old San Antonio native was already the 112- and 115-pound champion, but he proved himself again in the latter weight class on Saturday, knocking out division powerhouse and future Hall of Famer Juan Francisco Estrada in seven rounds.
This is the first truly outstanding win of his career… but it likely won't be the last.
Weight class: 135 pounds
Main titles: White blood cell count
I mentioned earlier that there was some upheaval at the back end of the rankings, with two fighters from last month retaining their spots and a third being replaced by David Benavidez.
Shakur Stevenson will get a chance to be ranked this weekend.
The unbeaten 135-pound ace will defend his WBC title for the first time against Artem Harutyunyan in Newark, where he has won three fights since 2019.
Another win for him could open the door for bigger fights against the likes of Vasiliy Lomachenko or Gervonta Davis.
Weight class: 135 pounds
Main titles: WBA
Oh, and did we mention Gervonta Davis?
He's the second of two fighters to remain on the rankings thanks to a big win in June. For “Tank,” that meant an eighth-round knockout victory over previously unbeaten Frank Martin in the main event of an Amazon Prime pay-per-view in Las Vegas.
The win marked Davis' 30th consecutive victory and 28th finish, and it also fueled anticipation for a showdown with fellow 135-pound challenger Shakur Stevenson.
Weight class: 175 pounds
Main titles: WBA
And we wait.
A highly anticipated showdown between Dmitry Bivol and fellow title contender Artur Beterbiev was scheduled for June before Beterbiev withdrew with an injury.
But Bivol kept fighting, knocking out hopeless Malik Zinad in sixth round to improve to 23-0. It was Bivol's first win in nine fights since 2018 and adds further intrigue to his rescheduled bout against Betebiev in October.
Weight class: 175 pounds
Main titles: IBF, WBC, WBO
The bad news? They didn't play in June.
The good news? They're scheduled to fight in October.
If Artur Beterbiev has no problems rehabbing his knee after injuring his meniscus in training, he'll be putting his perfect finishing ratio, 20 knockouts out of 20 wins – the only one among the sport's champions – on the line against a fighter who has never lost and has rarely been punished.
Interestingly, Beterbiev had only fought 15 rounds in the 28 months prior to facing Bivol, while his opponent had three bouts totaling 30 rounds in the same period.
Weight class: 168 pounds
Main titles: IBF, WBC, WBO
I'm happy to be Canelo Alvarez.
And that's unlikely to change anytime soon.
But the wolves are howling as the Mexican superstar seeks to either take the bait or take the fish in a bout with fellow 168-pounder David Benavidez. Benavidez has done everything he needed to do to qualify for a title fight, but so far his pursuit has been unsatisfying.
If Benavidez isn’t in the plans, it will be interesting to see what Alvarez does, considering recent winner Dmitry Bivol has already booked a 175-pound unification bout in October.
Weight class: 147 pounds
Main titles: WBA, WBO
In reality, it's been less than a year since we last saw Terence Crawford step into the ring, but it's fair to say it felt a lot longer than that.
He's now the undisputed former welterweight champion, thanks to the IBF stripping him of his title to Jaron Ennis and the WBC applying the dreaded “inactive” label, but he's looking to break new ground at 154 pounds when he faces one of the sport's least known beltholders, Israil Madrimov, in a WBA title fight at Los Angeles' BMO Stadium in early August.
If he wins there, who knows, maybe we'll see Crawford again before 2026.
Weight class: 122 pounds
Main titles: IBF, WBA, WBC, WBO
It's hard to ask for anything more from Naoya Inoue.
He has won titles in four weight classes, reaching undisputed four-belt status in two of them, and has never been close to losing in 27 professional fights, with 24 of those wins coming by knockout.
And at 31, he still appears to be in the prime of his career.
But here's one idea anyway:
What about fighting Jesse Rodriguez?
Weight class: Heavyweight
Main titles: IBF, WBA, WBC, WBO
If anyone tells you that boxing isn't stupid, don't listen.
that's right.
If you need proof, consider that the IBF plans to strip Oleksandr Usyk of his heavyweight title because he is scheduled to face Tyson Fury in a rematch in December rather than fight an IBF mandatory challenger in the meantime.
If that happens, divisional championships will likely be back to being split within months after being fully unified for the first time in the four-belt era.
But never mind that. Usyk is the champion. He's the guy who beat the opposition. And because of that, and his track record at cruiserweight and heavyweight, he deserves full marks as the best fighter in the world, no matter what the New Jersey geniuses have to say.
