The Featherweight division has gone through a lot of changes recently and we wouldn't be surprised to see it shine as a division in 2020 with a lot of very interesting match ups already being spoken about for the year ahead, one of which is just a few short weeks away.
Champions IBF - Josh Warrington (30-0, 7) One of two champions in the division known more for their volume punching than their power is Englishman Josh Warrington. The IBF champion claimed the belt in May 2018, when he dethroned Lee Selby, and has made 3 defenses, including wins over Carl Frampton and Kid Galahad. Warrington is a massive star in Leeds, and can fill out the local football stadium and at 29 is coming into his physical peak. Talk of unification bouts, with either WBO Shakur Stevenson or WBA Can Xu, have done their rounds and both of those would be very interesting bouts for Warrington, if the Englishman wants to prove he's the best in the division. WBA - Can Xu (18-2, 3) Chinese fighter Can Xu really burst on to the global scene last year when he took the WBA title with a win over Jesus M Rojas. Since then he has gone from strength to strength, defending his title against Shun Kubo and Manny Robles III. Like Josh Warrington it's fair to say that Xu is more known for his volume, and according to Compubox threw over 1,500 in his last bout, than his power. Despite that Xu does seem to hit harder than his record suggests and he has enough on his shots to get the respect of his opponents, even if he can't stop them. After his second defense he did call out Josh Warrington, and that would be an insane bout to watch, though we would be surprised to see that fight being made next. As the face of Chinese boxing Xu has the potential to bring huge attention to the sport, and could be a very significant figure going forward. WBO - Shakur Stevenson (13-0, 7) Fast rising American star Shakur Stevenson turned professional on the crest of momentum following a very impressive run at the 2016 Olympics. The expectation was that he would be an immediate star. It did however take a little while for Stevenson to settle into the pro ranks and really find his feet. In his last few fights however the Top Rank Promoted youngster has looked fantastic blowing out Viorel Simion, stopping Jessie Cris Rosales and dominating Christopher Rosales and Joet Gonzalez. It's still early days for the 22 year old, who only won the WBO title in October, but the future looks very, very bright for Stevenson. Rumour was that he would be facing Warrington next time out, but it now seems that his first defense will be against 33 year old Colombian Miguel Marriaga, who has quietly rebuilt since a 2017 loss to Vasyl Lomachenko. WBC - Gary Russell Jr (30-1, 18) It's hard to think of a man with the talent of Gary Russell Jr who has squandered their prime in a similar fashion. Russell had the ability to take the Featherweight division by the scruff of the neck and make it his. He could have been the face of American boxing and a massive star with his lighting quick speed and under-rated power. Instead his WBC title reign, which began in March 2015, has seen him defending the title just 4 times so far. That's once a year! It's unclear whether Russell doesn't like fighting, or just can't be bothered but his horrific level of activity has sat the WBC title on a shelf and really damaged both the title and his reputation. He is expected to make his annual appearance for 2020 in February, when he defends the WBC title against Tugstsogt Nyambayar. At the age of 31, and with his 32nd birthday coming in June, Gary Russell Jr really has wasted his career. A massive shame.
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The Super Bantamweight division has been an interesting one in recent years, despite some issues. We've had some really interesting fights, fighters who appear willing to be busy and prove themselves. Whilst we've not seen a host of unification bouts we have seen top fighters facing legitimate contenders and the division has moved on nice in the last few years, without really setting it's self on fire. Right now we have good champion, a good amount of talented contenders, and a lovely mix of styles.
Champions WBA "super and IBF - Daniel Roman (27-2-1, 10) Aggressive technician Daniel Roman is, at the time of writing, the unified WBA and IBF champion and went about things the hard way. He won the WBA title in Japan, stopping Shun Kubo, went back over to Japan for his first defense, against Ryo Matsumoto, and then went to war with TJ Doheny in a unification bout. The wonderfully respectful Doman was sadly forced out of a mandatory defense against Murodjon Akhmadaliev last September, but will face Akhmadaliev at the end of January in a mouth match up. WBC - Rey Vargas (34-0, 22) The 29 year old Rey Vargas may not be the most exciting or explosive fighter at 122lbs but the WBC champion is going to be a very tricky man to dethrone. Standing at close to 5'11" and with freakish reach Vargas is a guy that fighters will struggle to get close to and will have to take risks against. Sadly for all his talent, and he is talented, his bouts lack drama and excitement. Potentially set to change his promotional affiliation in 2020 there are options out there for Vargas, though we suspect he'll out grow the division before someone takes a title from him. Decribing Vargas in a word is easy, "awkward", beating him however is not easy in the slightest. WBO - Emanuel Navarrete (30-1, 26) Every division needs a destructive force and at Super Bantamweight we have Emanuel Navarrete, the Top Rank fighter who went 4-0 (4) in 2019 and has only seen the final bell once in his last 13 fights. His 2018 win over Isaac Dogboe saw him winning the WBO title and since then he has shown no mercy in stopping his opponents. Sadly his opposition hasn't been great since winning the title, a rematch with Dogboe aside, so hopefully 2020 brings a step up in class for the 24 year old "Vaquero". Quantity was fine in 2019, now lets see him in with some quality this year. IBF "interim" - Ryosuke Iwasa (27-3, 17) Former IBF champion Ryosuke Iwasa enters 2020 as the IBF "interim" champion, and is in an interesting position as the year kicks off. He'll be the mandatory challenger to the Roman Vs Akhmadaliev winner, if they wish to keep the unified titles and is in a great position to build on an excellent win against Marlon Tapales. The Japanese fighter, dubbed "Eagle Eye", does blow hot and cold but he looked really good against Tapales and will hopefully show that level of performance more often going forward. In 2019 we saw the Bantamweight division go through a lot of changes. We saw titles change hands, one old veteran look resurgent, and one contender essentially prove, again, that they can't make the weight any more. It was a division that benefited from the occasional surprise, and saw the WBSS add real prestige to the divisional kingpin. It's a division that is one of the strongest in the sport right now, and one of the most interesting, with so many match ups that could end up amazing us this coming year.
The Champions WBA "super" and IBF - Naoya Inoue (19-0, 16) The division's kingpin right now is Japanese "Monster" Naoya Inoue, the man who unified the WBA "super" and IBF titles and won the WBSS late last year. The Ohashi gym fighter, who recently inked a deal with Top Rank, has the star power, the destructive punching, the skills and mentality to prove himself that we should be wanting to see from more fighters. At the time of writing he's pencilled in to fight in the US on April 25th, and is expected to have a huge year, working alongside Top Rank to increase his profile. Expect a big year from Inoue. WBC - Nordine Oubaali (17-0, 12) French-Moroccan Nordine Oubaali cemented his place among the divisional elite with an under-rated 2019 campaign. He began the year beating Rau'shee Warren for the vacant WBC title, and then travelled to defend it against Arthur Villanueva and Takuma Inoue. The powerfully built champion is now 33 and will be looking for big money fights in 2020, if he can get past WBC mandatory challenger Nonito Donaire. Although talented, strong and heavy handed there were question marks asked of him late against Takuma Inoue, and we do wonder about his stamina and punch resistance. Those two issues aside, he looks fantastic, and it will take a special fighter to beat him. WBO - John Riel Casimero (29-4, 20) Multi-weight world champion John Riel Casimero put the cat among the pigeons in the division last year when he stopped Zolani Tete in 3 rounds to claim the WBO title. He then made it clear that he wanted Inoue next, in a bout that could well be confirmed by the time this gets published. The explosive, yet inconsistent, Filipino is both a genius and a rotter depending on how he feels on any given day. At his best he is a talented, heavy handed and unpredictable thunder-puncher. On other days he's the sort of fighter who sleep walks through bouts he should win. If he's on form he could be real trouble for Inoue with his unconventional shots and spiteful power. One of the most interesting divisions right now is the Flyweight division, which features 4 world champions with a combined record of 88-3 (62) and mixed youth and experience well. It also mixes styles really well, with a hyper aggressive champion, a skilled multi-weight champion, a counter punching genius and a talented, yet incredibly frustrating, champion. It's also a division with some really interesting contenders, which again mixes styles, experiences and skills.
The Champions WBO - Kosei Tanaka (15-0, 10) Unbeaten Japanese star Kosei Tanaka is enjoying success in his third division, having won world titles at Minimumweight and Light Flyweight before beginning his charge at Flyweight in 2018. He's a fighter who's inconsistent at times, but when he's on he looks sensational. Blessed with incredible speed, in both his hands and feet, under-rated power and a smart boxing brain Tanaka can do it all, but is regularly dragged into the wrong type of fight. IBF - Moruti Mthalane (39-2, 26) The most experienced champion in the division is 37 year old South African Moruti Mthalane, who has got 2 losses on his record but has gone unbeaten in over 11 years. The 2-time IBF champion has the best resume in the division, with notable wins against the likes of Zolani Tete, John Riel Casimero and most recently Akira Yaegashi. Despite his age he's looked after his body well, avoided wars and looks like he could have another year or two at the top. It's just a shame that Mthalane gave up the IBF title way back in 2013 or he'd likely have been a much more well regarded fighter. WBA - Artem Dalakian (19-0, 14) Azeri born Ukrainian fighter Artem Dalakian seemed like a breath of fresh air in 2018, when he travelled to the US and beat Brian Viloria for the WBA title. Sadly since then his reign has been dire, despite going 3-0 (3). He has made 2 mandatory defenses against poor Thai challengers and made a voluntary against the hapless Gregorio Lebron. Next up for Dalakian, in February, is Josber Perez, and it's clear that Dalakian and his team are happy to avoid decent challengers if they can. Sooner or later the WBA will force him to face a solid challenger, but until then expect fighters like Perez to be the norm for the talented, yet frustrating, 32 year old. WBC - Julio Cesar Martinez (15-1-0-1, 12) All action Mexican puncher Julio Cesar Martinez had a sensational 2019, going 3-0-0-1 (3). Notably he stopped the once touted Andrew Selby and former champion Cristofer Rosales. The only blot on his record for the year was his stupid late shot on Charlie Edwards, that gave the Englishman an excuse to seek a DQ win, though the result did only end up being changed to a No Contest. Had it not been for the late shot Martinez would have been the champion in August, rather than waiting until December. He's now planning his first defense for February and a win there is likely to open the door to much bigger fights down the line. The 105lbs division, called either Minimumweight or Strewweight by most, is the lightest in the sport, and in 2019 it had a stinking year. There was so little that happened at the top that it's easy to forget that two world titles changed hands and that the rest of the division really went over looked. Thankfully, for those paying attention, it was also the division with one of the biggest upsets of the year and a division that has seen 3 sensational talents begin their rise to the top.
To start the new we'll again be breaking down the divisions in the sport, starting with the champions in the Minimumweight division! Champions WBC - Wanehng Menayothin (54-0, 18) Unbeaten Thai Wanehng Menayothin comes into the year seeking his 13th world title defense and his 55th professional win. The talented Thai, who has gone unbeaten since his 2007 debut, may not be a big name but on paper his record certainly looks impressive. He had a relatively quiet 2019, fighting just twice, but wins over Tatsuya Fukuhara and Simpiwe Koncko were solid and helped establish him as the best of the bunch. He has signed a deal with Golden Boy Promotions and clearly the hope is to fight in the US, but with his 35th birthday later this year it seems likely that time is running out on Wanheng's hopes of becoming a household name. WBA - Knockout CP Freshmart (20-0, 7) WBA Champion Knockout CP Freshmart had a year to forget, with just one fight, a win against ArAr Andales, on his ledger for 2019. Much more is expected of the Thai though the reality is that his career has really toiled in recent years. He was once seen as the better of the two Thai's but he's not shined in a long time and with 5 straight decision wins, 7 decisions in his last 8, his name is becoming a joke. It may be that he needs some easy fights in 2020 get going again, but whatever it is he seems like a the low hanging fruit from the two Thai's that sit atop the division. WBO - Wilfredo Mendez (15-1, 5) Puerto Rican fighter Wilfredo Mendez was one of two new champions crowned in 2019, when he out pointed Vic Saludar. A the age of 23 he is certainly fresh blood in the division, and with 4 fights in 2019 he was a breath of fresh air in a division that didn't have much going for it last year. Sadly his first defense, a narrow win over Mexican teenager Axel Aragon Vega, made it clear that his reign wasn't going to be a distinguished one. He likely already has a target on his back as someone with a title that can be taken relatively easily and we wouldn't be surprised to see fighters battling to get their hands on Mendez in the new year. IBF - Pedro Taduran (14-2, 11) Another newer champion, having won the IBF title that Deejay Kriel vacated, Pedro Taduran is arguably the wild card of the champions. He lost a competitive bout to Wanheng in 2018 but has bounced back well and won the IBF title with a brilliant win over Samuel Salva. He's the only of the champions that would be described as a power puncher, and although crude as a fighter he's an aggressive nightmare who can take a shot and refuses to back off. Technically he's crude, and can be tagged, but his work rate, power and physicality make him an absolute nightmare to fight. In part 2 we'll look at 6 of the contenders and prospects who we expect to make a mark on the division in 2020. The Light Heavyweight division is one which is very top heavy right now, but any of the top fighters would make for an excellent match up if put against each other, and it's incredibly hard to to define who is the #1 in the division, with 4 very strong claimants.
Oleksandr Gvozdyk (16-0, 13) - WBC Champion (0 defenses) Unbeaten Ukrainian Oleksandr Gvozdyk is one of a number of talented fighters to have emerged from the excellent Ukrainian amateur system in recent years, such as Vasiliy Lomachenko and Oleksandr Usyk. "The Nail" won the WBC title back in December, when he ended the long reign of Adonis Stevenson, and is set for his first defense in March. Gvodzdyk is talented, heavy handed and is a technical boxer-puncher who can keep a relatively high pace, especially for the division. At 31, and turning 32 in April, his reign might not be an incredibly long one, but he is certainly someone worth watching. Sergey Kovalev (33-3-1, 28) - WBO Champion (0 defenses) Heavy handed Russian Sergey Kovalev recently regained the WBO title, avenging a prior loss to Eleider Alvarez. The 35 year old "Krusher" is coming to the end of his career, but is still a very dangerous fighter and someone who has very solid power and criminally under-rated boxing ability. He's slipped form his best, and has shown mental cracks in recent years, but is still a very good boxer-puncher who looked better than he has last time out. At his best he put fear into opponents with his power, though now it seems likely that he will be looking to use that power as a weapon in his arsenal rather than as his key way to victory. If he can stay on the right track he could beat anyone in the division, but out of the ring issues may end up derailing his renaissance. Dmitry Bivol (15-0, 11) - WBA Champion (4 defenses) Unbeaten champion Dmitry Bivol, born in Kyrgyzstan though regarded as a Russian fighter, is the youngest of the champions and is arguably the most rounded. He's a busy, active boxer puncher, with stiff power on his shots. He's not heady handed as Kovalev, Gvozdyk or Artur Beterbiev, but he's more technically sounded, a better ring general and a smarter boxer with more wrinkles to his game. He does have areas to work on, and certainly needs to work on things still, but the 28 year is proving to be a very talented, rounded and fantastic fighter who could be the best in the division. With wins over Sullivan Barrera, Isaac Chilemba and Jean Pascal in 2018 he has a very impressive resume that seems to be getting better with every fight. Artur Beterbiev (13-0, 13) - IBF Champion (1 defense) Another hard hitter in the division is IBF champion Artur Beterbiev, another Russian who punches like a mule. Beterbiev won the title in late 2017 but has struggled through his career with activity, management, and competition. He's been a professional for close to 6 years but has only managed 13 contests in that time. He has changed his team a few times and has been avoided, making his career one of the most disappointing. At the age of 34 he doesn't have long left in his career, and yet has only had 47 rounds as a professional. As an amateur Beterbiev was a star but as a professional his career appears likely to end up being an underwhelming one. A shame, but a very dangerous shame. Marcus Browne (23-0, 16) - WBA "interim" Champion (0 defenses) American fighter Marcus Browne had been bubbling under the surface for a few years whilst compiling a solid, yet unspectacular record. This past January however he put himself firmly in the mix when he defeated Badou Jack to become the WBA "interim" champion. The 28 year old former amateur stand out struggled past Radivoje Kalajdzic in April 2016 but sincee then has looked very good, beating not only Jack but also Sean Monaghan, Francy Ntetu and Thomas Williams Jr. He's the least accomplished amnd impressive of the top guys, but certainly appears to be developing well in recent bouts and could be the long term American hope of the division. Historically the Super Middleweight division has been dominated by European fighters, with British boxers in particular having a great history there with the likes of Joe Calzaghe, Carl Froch and the recently retired George Groves being huge stars there. Today though the division has sort of shifted with a new found Mexican influence at the top.
So lets begin by looking at the top guys at 168lbs. Callum Smith (25-0, 18) - WBA "super" (0 defenses) English boxer-puncher Callum Smith claimed the WBA "super" title in 2018, when he won the Super Middleweight WBSS and stopped George Groves. Despite that being his first world title bout he had long been considered as one of the truly elite fighters in the division, having held English, British, European and WBC "Diamond" titles. At 28 Smith is in his physical prime and is a huge and imposing fighter at 168lbs. Sadly his size is likely going to be an issue and force him to move up sooner rather than later. However, as long as he's at 168lbs he will be one of the top guys there, and one of the best body punchers in the sport today. There are some technical flaws to work on, but the reality is that he's a big, strong, powerful talented guy who will typically be able to overpower more skilled foes. Gilberto Ramirez (39-0, 25) - WBO (5 defenses) Another huge fighter at the weight is unbeaten Mexican Gilberto Ramirez Sanchez, who has held the WBO title since April 2016. The 27 year old Mexican is seen as a fighter who may be moving up in weight sooner rather than later, as he's huge and stands over 6'2". Fighting out of the southpaw stance Ramirez has the hall marks of a big Mexican star. He's talented, looks good, can be exciting, if matched properly, hits hards and has good boxing fundamentals. Sadly his recent performances haven't been great, and his competition hasn't allowed to really show what he can do. He also seemed to suffer an injury last time out, so it could be a bit of wait until he faces another top name. Caleb Plant (18-0, 18) - IBF (0 defenses) Unbeaten American Caleb Plant, dubbed "Sweethands", showed how good he was in January when he dethroned Jose Uzcategui in LA, to claim the IBF title. The talented Planet proved he his harder than his record suggests, dropping Uzcategui twice, as managed to show great hand speed, movement and activity, at least early on. He struggled late in the bout, in what was only his second 12 round bout. Despite holding a world title Plant looks like a fighter who is still a work in progress, but the 26 year old American is certainly a solid boxer, with a likable personality and a back story that will have fans on his side for a long time to come. It's hard to imagine him beating any of the other champions at the weight, but in reality there's not many contenders that would be clearly favoured over him, and if he improve as we expect than he could end up having a very good reign. Saul Alvarez (51-1-2, 35) - WBA "regular" (0 defenses) A bit of an oddity here is that Saul "Canelo" Alvarez is the WBA interim champion, having won the belt in late 2018 from Rocky Fielding. That win showed that Canelo, at 168lbs, still holds a punch but appears to have been little more than a 1-off, for now. The 28 year old Mexican icon has since announced that he will be dropping back down to Middleweight to face Daniel Jacobs in a WBA "super", IBFand WBC Middleweight title unification. Alvarez will certainly end up at 168lbs down the line, but for now he's a Middleweight who dipped his toes at Super Middleweight and picked up a secondary title. The Middleweight division, along with the Heavyweight, Light Heavyweight and Welterweight divisions, has typically been one of the key divisions in deciding the state of the sport. Right now however, it does feel rather lacking in terms of depth, despite having some of the sports biggest names. It's a division that is incredibly top heavy and very much lacking in depth. What also doesn't help is that between the champions there has been a lack of established reigns and defenses, making the division have big names but lack a long reigning center figure
Saul Alvarez (51-1-2, 35)- WBC, WBA Super (0 defenses) Saul "Canelo" Alvarez is arguably the biggest name in boxing right, and commands an insane amount of attention, huge purses and mass fanfare when he gets in the ring. Whether you like him or not, and whether you feel he has had some favours from judges or not, it's undeniable that when Canelo fights the boxing world pays attention. His win over Gennady Golovkin last year, in what was a very controversial result, saw Alvarez claim the WBA "Super" and WBC titles, with the intention now being to unify them on May 4th against IBF champion Daniel Jacobs. Something that is worth noting about Canelo is that he is still looking to rebuild his reputation following a drug test failure in 2018, and it seems like he will look to make a point of proving he is a clean fighter at every opportunity. Daniel Jacobs (35-2, 29) - IBF (0 defenses) Canelo won his title in September and the following month Daniel Jacobs won the IBF title, taking the vacant title with a win over Sergiy Derevyanchenko. The IBF title had been stripped from Gennady Golovkin, prior to his rematch with Alvarez, opening up the opportunity for Jacobs to win the belt. The 31 year old, soon to be 32 year old, Jacobs is an exciting and flawed boxer-puncher. He's quick, explosive and a smart fighter than many give him credit for. He also has a heart warming backstory of surviving cancer to become a world champion. Sadly for Jacobs he has shown some fragility, having been stopped by Dmitry Pirog and been put down by Golovkin and Sergio Mora, but he seems to have shown the brains to counter-act his questionable chin. His bout with Canelo should be very interesting, and is one of the first true super fights of 2019. Demetrius Andrade (27-0, 17) - WBO (1 defense) Unbeaten American Demetrius Andrade is a talented yet incredibly frustrating fighter who seems to have been around for years, and actually debuted back in 2008. Despite his long unbeaten career he has failed to set the world on fire, or even really make the most of any opportunity he's had. He won the WBO title in October, when he defeated Walter Kautondokwa for the title which had been left behind by Billy Joe Saunders following a drugs test. Whilst Kautondokwa was an awkward fighter Andrade seemed to show no killer instinct. He made his first defense of the title this past Friday, and scored a bizarre stoppage over Artur Akavov, in what seemed to be an awful decision by Arthur Mercante. Andrade is a huge, awkward, fast, explosive southpaw, but lacks that something that could make a star. His reign is shrouded in controversy, due to the way Saunder's reign ended, and his performances have regularly failed to show just how good he is. If he can put everything together he could be a star, but it seems like he will never really show what he's capable of. Rob Brant (24-1, 16) WBA "Regular" (0 defenses) Once beaten American Rob Brant shocked the boxing world last year, when he upset Ryota Murata to claim the WB "regular" title. The 28 year old was another champion crowned in what was a division changing October, and he'll be making his first defense in February, when he takes on the unbeaten Khasan Baysangurov. From his 25 fights Brant is known for 2. One is the shock win over Murata in which he set an insane pace and out boxed the Japanese Olympic champion with ease. The other is his loss to Juergen Braehmer, which saw Brant looking rather clueless against the German veteran. He has clearly learned from that loss to the German and given his performance against Murata it's clear he is a very talented fighter, with under-rated power, and a great engine. Jermall Charlo (28-0, 21) WBC interim (1 defense) Jermall Charlo, the unbeaten twin of Jermell Charlo, won the WBC "interim" title last April when he stopped Hugeo Centono Jr in 2 rounds. Prior to winning the Interim title Charlo had a short reign at 154lbs, where he had held the IBF title and made 3 defenses. Charlo is a talented boxer-puncher, with very respectable power, but is technically not as good as he seems to think he is, as we saw recently when he was fortunate to over-come Matt Korobov. The win over Korobov looked comfortable on paper, against an old and inactive Russian challenger, and looked clear on the judges scorecards but the reality is that Charlo wasn't the clear winner in the eyes of the fans, and it seemed like he was really tested by the first skilled Middleweight he'd faced. Charlo will call for the big fights, but the reality is that he's not in the same league as the top 2 men in the division. 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. One of the most highly regarded and celebrated divisions in the sport right now is the Welterweight division, which has some of the biggest names in it, and some of the most recognisable fighters in it. It also has major issues with actual match making, and almost all the champions have got less than amazing match ups lined up for the first half of 2019.
Shawn Porter (29-2-1, 17) - WBC (0 defenses) Rough and tumble American fighter Shawn Porter won the WBC title last September, winning an ultra competitive bout with Danny Garcia to become a 2-time world champion. Sadly the win over Garcia was his only bout in 2018, and he has only fought 4 times since the start of 2016, losing one of those bouts to Keith Thurman. With 2 losses to his name we know he's not unbeatable, but he's exciting, heavy handed and enjoys a fight. During his career he has faced a relative who's who including Devon Alexander, Paulie Malignaggi, Kell Brook, Adrien Broner, Keith Thurman, Andre Berto and Danny Garcia. He'll be back in the ring on March 9th to defend his title against the unbeaten Yordenis Ugas. Errol Spence (24-0, 21) - IBF (2 defenses) The unbeaten Errol Spence is one of the real rising stars of American boxing and was regarded as one of the top Welterweights before he took the IBF crown from Kell Brook in May 2017. He was a standout amateur who has became a major offensive force in the professional ranks. He's aggressive, exciting, has a personality that will keep fans onside and a real desire to show what he can do in the ring. Sadly he's not been mega active, with just 3 fights in 2017 and 2018 combined, but he has been fighting at a high level with wins against the likes of Chris Algieri, Leonardo Bundo, Kell Brook, Lamont Peterson. He's stopped his last 11 opponents and is a real threat to anyone in the division. His next defense comes on March 9th, when he takes on Lightweight champion Mikey Garcia. Terence Crawford (34-0, 25) - WBO (1 defense) The sensational switch hitting Terence Crawford is a 3-weight champion and arguably the #1 pound-for-pound fighter on the planet. At Lightweight he dominated the likes of Ricky Burns and Raymundo Beltran before moving up in weight and unifying all 4 titles at Light Welterweight, defeating the likes of Thomas Dulorme, Henry Lundy, Viktor Postol and Julius Indongo. He moved up in weight last year and popped the cherry's of both Jeff Horn and Jose Benevidez Jr, and showed that he may finally be at his best weight. He's a slippery skilled fighter, who has under-rated power, exceptional skills and speed and is one of the most naturally talented fighters in the sport. His next defense if set for April against Amir Khan, in a bout that has the fell of a stay busy defense, rather than a reputation enhancing one. Keith Thurman (28-0-0-1, 22) WBA "Super" (0 defenses) Highly regarded American Keith Thurman has become one of the most frustrating fighters in the sport today. He's a brilliantly talented boxer-puncher with fantastic charisma but the activity that makes fans question whether or not he is an active fighter. He was last in the ring in March 2017 and has once fought 4 times since the start of 2015. He is a former WBA "interim", WBA "regular" and WBC champion, though was stripped of the WBC title due to lack of activity. We're not currently aware of any fighter, in the sport, who still holds a world title after 22 months of inactivity but the WBA do seem to have been very nice in not stripping Thurman. Thankfully he is set to make his ring return on January 26th, it's just unfortunately going to be against Josesito Lopez. Lopez was a great fighter back in the day but he has fought just 3 times since being stopped by Andre Berto in 2015! The situation with Thurman very much feels like the WBA have played politics due to his popularity. We like him, but he shouldn't have been able to hold up the top WBA title for so long without fighting. Manny Pacquiao (60-7-2, 39) WBA "regular" (0 defenses) Filipino icon Manny Pacquiao is still going strong at the age of 40. The former multi-weight world champion the WBA "regular" Welterweight title in July 2017, when he beat Lucas Matthysse in 7 rounds in Malaysia. That was Pacquiao's first bout in over a year, following his loss to Jeff Horn in 2017. He's not the fighter he was in his pomp, destroying the likes of Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales, Ricky Hatton and Miguel Cotto, but is still one of the biggest names in the sport. It's hard to know what he has left, but he did look sharp stopping Matthysse and will be looking to show that there is a lot more life in the old dog later this month, when he takes on the controversial Adrien Broner, on January 19th. At his best he was destrutive little fireball with incredible power, speed and unpredictable movement, as he's gotten older he's had to depend more on his boxing ability, and whilst that's solid he's certainly not closer to the fighter he once was. |
Takahiro Onaga
Takahiro Onaga is a regular contributor to Asian Boxing and will now be a featured writer in his own column where his takes his shot at various things in the boxing world. Archives
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