The Ring came out with their latest pound-for-pound rankings, with one notable addition: WBC light heavyweight champion David Benavidez added to the list at the #10 spot, and Shakur Stevenson, the WBC lightweight champion, moved up to #9.
Benavidez’s Undeniable #1 Case
Benavidez (30-0, 24 KOs) should be at the #1 spot in the rankings because he has the best recent win over David Morrell. He also dominated the 168-lb division, beating all comers before moving up to 175. His first victory in the light heavyweight division came against former champion Oleksandr Gvozyk. That was impressive.
Terence Crawford’s Inactivity Problem
The Ring’s P4P list needs a complete overhaul because it’s way off in terms of having relevant rankings that make sense. They have the inactive once-a-year fighter, Terence Crawford, at #3. That’s way too high. Crawford, 37, hasn’t fought enough since 2019, and his resume is too weak for him to be on the top 10 list at all.
Updated Ring P4P List
- Oleksandr Usyk
- Naoya Inoue
- Terence Crawford
- Dimitry Bivol
- Artur Beterbiev
- Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez
- Junto Nakatani
- Canelo Alvarez
- Shakur Stevenson
- David Benavidez
Oleksandr Usyk needs to be moved down from #1 due to his best recent wins being against the over-the-hill British fighters, Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury. Both of those guys are in their mid-30s and have been washed for at least four years. Moreover, neither of them has won over elite fighters on their resumes unless you count 40-year-old Wladimir Klitschko.
A New Pound-for-Pound Hierarchy
- David Benavidez
- Canelo Alvarez
- Oleksandr Usyk
- Artur Beterbiev
- Jesse ‘The Bam’ Rodriguez
- Jai Opetaia
- Andy Cruz
- Janibek Alimkhanuly
- Agit Kabayel
- David Morrell
What’s Wrong with Shakur Stevenson
Again, Crawford didn’t make my Improved list due to his inactivity and weak resume. Shakur Stevenson also didn’t make my list due to his lack of quality wins since moving up to the lightweight division. I wasn’t impressed with his abysmal imitation of Floyd Mayweather Jr. in his recent victory over William Zepeda on July 12th.