The State of the Division 2020 - Light Middleweight - Contenders

2/2/2020

The Light Middleweight division is one of the most interesting as none of the fighters in it can seem to separate themselves from the chasing pack of contenders. It seems that on an any given day one of the contenders could defeat a champion. What makes that even more incredible is the sheer depth of contenders in the division, with more contenders of note than pretty much any other division. These including former champions, solid established contenders, and rising hopefuls on their way to the top.

Brian Carlos Castano (16-0-1, 12)
Unbeaten Argentinian Brian Carlos Castano is a 30 year who won the WBA title in 2017, made 2 defenses before losing the belt, with reports stating that he was either stripped or vacated. Castano's reign ended when he refused to travel to France to face Michel Soro with out his purse being put in escrow and without having confirmation of drug testing in place. It's worth noting that Castano won the title by beating Soro, and then was forced to wait months for his purse. Essentially he lost the title on principle, and should be seen as the belt-less champion. Thankfully he's expected to get a shot at WBO champion Patrick Teixeira later this year.

Jarrett Hurd (24-1, 16)
Exciting American Jarrett Hurd is looking to prove he wasn't just a flash in the pan. The strong and powerful Hurt won the IBF title in 2017, stopping Tony Harrison, then beat Austin Trout before unifying the IBF and WBA titles with a win over Erislandy Lara. His reign was a disappointing one, defeating Jason Welborn before losing the belts to Julian Williams last year. On Hurt has fought once since losing the titles, taking a decision over the much smaller Francisco Santana last time out. Hurt, as his best, is an exciting inside fighter, but he's tried a few times to show a more traditional boxing style, something that works for him against a lower level opponent, but we suspect will not be the most effective for him when he returns to fighting top level fighters later in the year.

Julian Williams (27-2-1-1, 16)
American 29 year old Julian "J-Rock" Williams like so many others here has had a short reign and is looking to recapture a title. He got his first world title shot back in 2016 and was stopped by Jermall Charlo, he would then bounce back and defeat Jarrett Hurd for the IBF and WBA "super" titles in May 2019 before losing the belt in January to Jeison Rosario. A talented boxer puncher Williams is a man who's hard to really get a read one. Sady he's had issues with activity, with just 1 fight in 2019 and only 6 fights since the start of 2017. We suspect he'll be getting a rematch with Rosario later this year, and with the right game plan he could reclaim the titles, though will certainly not risk over looking the Dominican again if they do rematch.

Erickson Lubin (22-1, 16)
Once seen as the face of the division hard hitting American hopeful Erick Lubin saw his unbeaten record come to an end in October 2017 when he was stopped, inside a round, when he faced Jermell Charlo. Since then he has racked up 4 wins, including notable victories over Ishe Smith and Nathaniel Gallimore, to get himself back in the mix. Exciting, with a big punch Lubin is one to keep an eye on, and at just 24 years old there really is no need to rush him. Although talented and a very good contender, it does feel like Lubin needs another fight or two before he should be given a big shot.

Tony Harrison (28-3, 21)
Former WBC champion Tony Harrison shocked the division in late 20018, when he took a close decision win over Jermell Charlo, but lost a rematch a year later and failed to notch a single successful defense. The 29 year old is a very talented boxer-moved, and although he's got close to a 70% KO rate he's not much of an actual puncher with his last stoppage wins of note coming against Siarhei Rabchanka back in 2016. Harrison is someone who will remain a main player in the division, and will likely get another world title fight, but there are question marks about his durability and he has been stopped in all 3 of his defeats. A solid contender, but given the depth in the division he almost merges in the division's many other talented fighters.

Michel Soro (35-2-1, 24)
Talented French fighter Michel Soro is a fantastic contender level fighter with under rated skills and solid pop. He's the sort of fighter who deserves to be in the mix and has remained there due to decent wins over the likes of Glen Tapia, Emanuele Blandamura, Javier Francisco Maciel, Greg Vendetti and John Vera. He's lost in his two bouts at world level, losing a competitive decision to Zaurbek Baysangurov in 2012 and a close decision to Brian Carlos Castano in 2017, but has the wins to solidify his place as a contender. He's expected to get another world title fight in the near future, and at 32 years old that will likely be his last shot.

Israil Madrimov (4-0, 4)
Uzbek 24 year old Israil Madrimov is one of those rare, rare fighters who looked like he was ready for big things immediately after turning professional. On his debut he impressed, in dominated Vladimir Hernandez, showed an ability to switch hit, box, move, and punch. Since then he has gone on to stop Frank Rojas, Norberto Gonzalez and Alejandro Barerra in 3 very impressive performances. It's clear Madrimov is facing good competition, but needs excellent competition to get the best from him. Although he only has 4 fights as a professional he was a stellar amateur and it's clear that they could push him to a world title before the end of 2020. A rare, sensational athlete, with a strong boxing background and excellent ring IQ. The only problem for Madrimov is keeping him interested, and at times he's looked like he's been entertaining himself against his solid, but over-matched, opposition.

Takeshi Inoue (16-1-1, 10)
Once beaten Japanese fighter Takeshi Inoue is best known for his 2019 loss to Jaime Munguia in a WBO world title fight. Since then he has scored 3 stoppages, in a combined 5 rounds, to win and defend the WBO Asia Pacific title. Aged 30 the rugged, and physically strong Inoue is thought to be aiming to secure another world title fight this year, and we wouldn't be surprised to see him getting a shot given his fan friendly style, toughness and his performance against Munguia. He would be the under-dog against any of the champions but would certainly be a tough 12 round test, for any of the top fighters in the division.

Bakhram Murtazaliev (17-0, 13)
US based Russian contender Bakhram Murtazaliev has been quietly making a name for himself with a string of C tier wins over the likes of Norberto Gonzalez and Elvin Ayala. It would seem likely he'll make the move up to B level guys in 2020 and then begin heading towards a title fight before the year is over. Aged 27 time is there for him to develop and improve, but the feeling is that his team aren't willing to put up the money to get him the best competition and it could be another frustrating year for a man who needs better tests than he's getting. With Egis Klimas behind him there's always the potential for him to get a break sooner, rather than later, but it feels like his career has been a case of making steps the last couple of years, and rarely losing rounds in the process.

Serhii Bohachuk (17-0, 17)
An US based foreign born fighter is Ukrainian destroyed Serhii Bohachuk who has racked up 17 wins, all by stoppage, in just 50 professional rounds. He made his around 3 years ago and did so without much song and dance and has developed an impressive reputation as a destructive, heavy-handed, aggressive and exciting fighter. He's not the most technically sound of the Uzbek fighters out there but he's a very big, powerful fighter who applies pressure and beats people up. So far he's looked really exciting and promising, but his competition has been rather limited and we still have a lot of questions for Bohachuk to answer, regarding his chin and stamina. Certainly one to get excited about, and one we expect to see a lot of in 2020.

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The state of the Division - Light Middleweight - The Champions

1/14/2019

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At the moment the Light Middleweight division is one that has several really exciting potential match ups, and a potential unification bout that if made would almost certainly be a front running for the FOTY. With that said, lets have a look at those current world champions.

Jarrett Hurd (26-0, 16) - IBF, WBA "super" (3 defenses of IBF title, 1 defense of WBA "super")
Unbeaten American fighter Jarrett "Swift" Hurd is one of the few unified champions in the sport, having unified the IBF and WBA titles at 154lbs. In the ring the 28 year old is an all aggressive monster. He's flawed defensively but has an incredible work rate, a fantastic toughness and refuses to take a backwards step. Although he doesn't look technically great, or quick, he's incessant, and brings intense pressure from the opening seconds to the final bell. So far he has scored notable wins over the likes of Tony Harrison, Austin Trout, Erislandy Lara, Frank Galarza and Oscar Molina. One of the worries about Hurd is his size and he won't be able to make 154lbs forever.

Jaime Munguia (31-0, 26) - WBO (2 defenses)
Another fighter who seems to have a limited time at Light Middleweight is Mexican sensation Jaime Munguia, who claimed the WBO title last year and ran up two defenses, all in the space of 5 months. The Mexican ripped the WBO title away from Sadam Ali in May, when he was a late replacement, and went on defeat Liam Smith and Brandon Cook in the months that followed. Munguia, like Hurd, is technically limited and defensively flawed, but throws so much leather that he generally beats opponents down, or handcuffs them to the point where they are unable to fight back. He's all aggression and incredibly exciting, and a bout him and Hurd looks like a bout that should be on every fan's wish list. Munguia is set to return on January 26th to defend his title against Takeshi Inoue.

Tony Harrison (28-2, 21) - WBC (0 defenses)
The newest champion in the division is WBC king Tony Harrison. "Super Bad" won the title in December 2018, upsetting the previously unbeaten Jermell Charlo in a close decision bout, a decision that many disagreed with. Harrison is smart, slippery fighter who can fight when he needs to, and can box when he needs to, as we saw against Charlo. Although a really talented fighter Harrison's tactics can be frustrating and he has shown real flaws already in his career, suffering two stoppages, both in round 9. His stamina, and chin, are both question marks, but he has got a good boxing brain and at 28 he is still maturing as a fighter.

Brian Carlos Castano (15-0, 11) - WBA "Regular" (1 defense)
Unbeaten Argentinian fighter Brian Carlos Castano fills out list of champions at 154lbs, thanks to his WBA "regular" title. The 29 year old was a former amateur standout, with notable amateur wins over the likes of Esquiva Falcao and Errol Spence, and was fantastic in the WSB, defeating Sergit Derevyanchenko in that. As a professional his best wins have been against the likes of Michel Soro and Cedric Vitu. He's a talented boxer, with good movement, very solid power and good work rate, though perhaps needs to showcase his ability against a top level opponent, something that's expected later this year with a bout against Erislandy Lara supposedly in the works. He's talented and it's going to be very fun to see how he copes with world class opponents later this year.

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The State of the Division 2020 - Light Middleweight - Contenders

The state of the Division - Light Middleweight - The Champions

Takahiro Onaga

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