Mauricio Sulaiman
WBC President – Son of Jose Sulaiman
The historic first half of 2024 ended on a more than positive note for the world of boxing. Never before has there been a situation like the one we are currently experiencing, with so many fighters claiming to hold the famous phrase “pound for pound”. Let's take a look at some of them and see what you think.
- Mexico's Saul “Canelo” Alvarez has long been at the top of this list with a record of 61 wins, 2 losses, 2 draws and 39 knockouts. He is the current unbeaten super middleweight champion (WBC, WBA, WBO, IBF) and just defeated the courageous Jaime Munguia in a sensational bout in Las Vegas back in May.
- Terence “Bud” Crawford, USA, 40-0, 31 KOs. He was the undisputed champion at super lightweight, but in 2023 he knocked out his arch rival Errol Spence Jr. in a stunning, unbeaten fight to become the undisputed champion at welterweight (WBC, WBA, WBO, IBF). His next fight will be at super welterweight on August 3rd in California, and will be his debut in the US Riyadh season.
- Naoya Inoue, Japan, 27-0, 24 KOs. He won the WBC light flyweight title against Adrian Hernandez on April 6, 2014 at the Ota Ward General Gymnasium. He quickly won the super flyweight title and defeated Nonito Donaire to become the undisputed champion at bantamweight. He is currently the undisputed champion at the super bantamweight division (WBC, WBA, WBO, IBF) and just won against mandatory challenger and two-time champion Luis Nery in front of 50,000 fans at the Tokyo Dome in Japan.
- Ukrainian Olympic gold medalist Oleksandr Usyk was the undisputed cruiserweight champion with a record of 22-0 with 14 knockouts, but decided to try his luck at the highest weight class. On May 18, Usyk defeated the undefeated and heavily favored world champion Tyson Fury in the greatest fight of all time in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to become the undisputed champion (WBC, WBA, WBO, IBF). The rematch will take place on December 21.
- American Gervonta Davis is the current WBA lightweight champion with a record of 30-0 with 28 knockouts and has defeated some of the best opponents in the business. On June 15th, he defeated Frank Martin with a stunning knockout at the legendary MGM Grand Garden Arena in what marked the 100th night in boxing history.
- Devin Haney of the United States, with a record of 31-0 and 15 knockouts, defeated George Kambosos in Australia to become the undefeated lightweight champion (WBC, WBA, WBO, IBF). He defeated Kambosos in the rematch and also the legendary Vasyl Lomachenko. He won the WBC super lightweight championship against Regis Prograis, but his recent fights have been full of controversy and injustice, as his opponent Ryan Garcia failed to make the official weight and tested positive for two banned substances, leading to the result of this fight being annulled.
- Canada's Artur Beterbiev is the light heavyweight world champion (WBC, WBO, IBF) with a record of 20 wins, 0 losses, and 20 knockouts, all of which have come by knockout. On October 12th, he will face Dmitry Bivol for the title of undefeated champion in the division.
- Kyrgyzstan's Dimitri Bivol, with a record of 23-0 with 12 knockouts, will face arch rival Artur Betrubiev for the undefeated light heavyweight title.
- David Benavidez, from Mexico/USA, 29-0, 24 KOs. Three-time WBC World Champion at super middleweight, currently interim super middleweight and light heavyweight champion. On June 15, he defeated former champion Oleksandr Gvozdyk to win the interim light heavyweight title.
He is still deciding in which division he will continue his career. - Jesse Van Rodriguez, American-Mexico, 20-0 (13 KOs). A light flyweight phenom, he moved up to super flyweight to win the WBC title and defeat two-time champion Carlos Cuadras. In his next bout, he knocked out two-time Thai champion Srisaket Sor Rungvisai. He then returned to flyweight to become the WBO champion and last Saturday he knocked out legendary multi-time champion Garo Estrada to win the WBC super flyweight title.
There are 10 fighters here, any of whom could be considered number one pound-for-pound, it all depends on the preferences of the person making their own list.
Did you know that…?
There are several other fighters who could make it onto this list due to their superior level of boxing.
– Tyson Fury (Great Britain), 34-1-1 record with 24 KOs, two-time heavyweight champion and considered the best in the heavyweight division before his split decision loss to Usyk, will be looking to avenge his only defeat on December 21st.
- Shakur Stevenson (USA), record (21-0, 10 KOs), three-time world champion, current WBC lightweight champion.
- American Errol Spence has a record of 28 wins, 1 loss, 0 draws and 22 knockouts. He lost his last fight to top champion Crawford but is looking to come back strong.
- Vasiliy Lomachenko, Ukraine. Record: 18-3-0 with 12 KOs. A perennial top contender, two-time Olympic champion and world champion in three different weight classes, he is returning to win the title in 2024 and is looking to claim glory later this year.
- Teofimo Lopez, USA/Honduras, record 21-1-0, 13 KOs. An all-around champion with his sights set on a big bout in 2024.
- Junto Nakatani (Japan), 27 wins, 0 losses, 0 draws, 20 KOs, two-time champion, current WBC bantamweight champion.
- Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez of Nicaragua, who boasts a record of 51 wins, 4 losses, 0 draws and 41 knockouts, has been on the list for many years and will return to the ring on July 12.
- The first term matches were extraordinary, there were dramatic matches, epic events and excitement for fans around the world, but which was your favourite?
- The Riyadh Heavyweight Undisputed bout between Fury and Usyk in the Ring of Fire became an instant classic.
- The Inoue vs. Nelly match was a sold-out affair at the Tokyo Dome, Tyson's first fight since his loss to Douglas, and was full of drama as Inoue took to the court for the first time in the first round to give Nelly a comeback.
- Canelo vs. Munguia T-Mobile Las Vegas, sensational May 5 celebration with amazing fights
- An innovative concept for incredible 5v5 matches and promotions in Riyadh
- In addition to Fundora vs Tzsyu, the opening card on Amazon Prime Video will feature a fantastic undercard bout of Pitbull Cruz vs Rollie Romero at T Mobile Las Vegas.
- A dramatic duel between Kenshiro Terachi and Cañizares of Tokyo Japan. Both fighters fall to the canvas.
- Bam Rodriguez vs. Estrada Phoenix Arizona. The baton is passed from generation to generation.
- A great card featuring Gervonta Davis vs. Martin, Benavidez vs. Gvozdyk and celebrating 100 KO night at the MGM Grand Arena.
- At the Lomachenko vs. Kambosos match in Australia, the stadium was packed to see the return of champion Lomachenko.
- Dramatic fight between Chikaraishi and Magnesi in Italy, with a knockout in the final round
Today's story
My father, Jose Sulaiman, passed away 10 years ago, but in our last conversation before his hospitalization, he expressed his opinion about outstanding legendary boxers, and looking at the modern practices of boxing, he was absolutely right! “Son, I don't like the path boxing is taking and the way promoters, managers and boxers are currently managing careers. The great champions, like Carlos Monzon, Alexis Arguello, Hagler, Leonard, Chavez, Ricardo Lopez, etc., have cemented their legends with long careers as monarchs of their weight classes, defending their championships multiple times, defending the strawweight title 22 times, and countless other achievements.
Today, I see them rushing a career, trying to win whatever title they can, then moving up a weight class and winning more in other weight classes, selling that fighter to the fans as a multiple-time champion fighter, but in reality, his quality is not at the level that it should be.
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