March 13, 2025, 06:49 am at
For the second month in a row, there have been a big shakeup in ESPN’s pound pound rankings.
In February, David Benavides replaced Junto Nakatani with a list following an impressive victory over “Mexican monsters” David Morell.
Now Nakatani is rejoining right after Gerbonta Davis’s career wurst performance, a shocking draw with Lamont Roach on March 1st.
For the first time in recent memory, “Tank” Davis is not on the list as he struggled strongly as a -2000 favorite per ESPN bet. He used to be 8 pounds. Nakatani and Shakur Stephenson are each behind him, Benavides, who is now occupying the place.
That’s not the only move. Dmitry Bivol and Artur Beterbiev traded spots for the top five on February 22 following Bivol’s decisive victory.
Naoya Inoue was tied to Terence Crawford in his previous rankings, but now occupies second place in one spot on “Bud”.
Mike Coppinger, Timothy Bradley Jr., Joe Tescitore, Teddy Atlas, Nick Parkinson, Eric Ruskin, Bernardo Osna, Michelle Joy Phelps, Eric Woodyard, Bernardo Piratti, Charles Moynihan, Salvador Rodriguez, Vital Mascarope, Alliance Phrase Delgado Averhoff shares the votes.
Other ESPN Rankings: Division Rankings and Women’s Pound Pound Rankings.
Note: The results are until March 13th.
1. Rankings before OLEKSANDRUSYK: 1
Record: 23-0, 14 Kos
Division: Heavyweight (Unified Champion)
Final Battle: W (UD12) Tyson Fury, December 21st
Next battle: TBA
The Olympic gold medalist has effectively cleaned out the heavyweight leader since September 2021, winning with a two-point victory over Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and a 9th round KO from Daniel Du Bois. These are the ESPN heavyweight rankings, with five victories in three of the four fighters behind him. Still, there is an interesting fight for Usyk. His promoter, Alexander Krassuk, recently told the ring that the 38-year-old would not join Fury when he retired, but would fight. Usyk is interested in a rematch with IBF champion Daniel Dubois, who Koe in the ninth round in August 2023, and will regain the incontroversial championship. – Mike Coppinger
2. Rankings before naoyainoue: T-2
Record: 29-0, 26 Kos
Division: Junior Featherweight (uncontroversial champion)
Final Battle: W (KO4) Ye Joon Kim, January 24th
Next battle: May 4th vs. Ramon Cardenas
“Monster” will be fighting in the US for the first time since 2021 in a May 4 matchup against Las Vegas’ Ramon Cardenas. San Antonio’s Cardenas is ranked 10th in ESPN at 122 pounds and expects another Inoue Ko victim. The unusual Sunday title fight concludes the packed fight weekend, starting May 2nd, with Ryan Garcia, Devin Haney and Theofimo Lopez capped in separate matches before returning the next day. Inoue is expected to meet former champion Murojong Ahmadaliev in Japan in September, followed by a match in December in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. -Coppinger
3. Rankings before TerenceCrawford: T-2
Record: 40-0, 31 Kos
Division: Junior Middleweight (Champion)
The final battle: W (UD12) Israil Madrimov, August 3rd
Next battle: TBA
The four division champions line up in the dream battle in September. This is a shot at the super middleweight Canelo Alvarez where Crawford rises two more weight classes in one fight at 154 pounds. There is no denying Crawford’s immeasurable talent and skill set. He seamlessly switches between Orthodox and Southpaw, with elite footwork and A+ fighting spirit. All of this will be tested if he faces Alvarez as expected. In addition to the incredible gap in size, Crawford is perhaps the sport’s most inactive star. He last fought more than twice in 2019. And if he fought Alvarez, sources said ESPN Crawford wouldn’t fight before that, and would spend time building up his body up to 168 pounds. -Coppinger
4. Rankings before DmitryBivol: 5
Record: 24-1, 12 Kos
Division: Light Heavyweight (uncontroversial champion)
The Final Battle: W (MD12) Artur Beterbiev, February 22nd
Next battle: TBA
Bivol decided on Artur Beterbiev on February 22nd, earning his second victory over the Surefire Future Hall of Famer. Other such victory came when he defeated Canelo Alvarez firmly in May 2022. Many observers believed that Bibolu deserved a nod when they met Beterbiev in October, but he was even more impressive in the rematch as he maintained an offensive attack late in the fight. For the first time, Betterviev unanimously won the battle by matching the final three rounds. Next up after Bivol is his third fight with Beterbiev, or an uncontroversial light heavyweight title defense vs. Benavidez. -Coppinger
5. Rankings before ArturBeterbiev: 4
Record: 21-1, 20 Kos
Division: Light Heavyweight
The final battle: L (MD12) Dmitry Bivol, February 22nd
Next battle: TBA
Beterbiev suffered the first defeat of his professional career in the Bibolu rematch on February 22nd, but he remains in star form at the age of 40. Betterviev simply encountered fellow elite fighters in his career, including such opposition. And like the first match Betterviev won through decisions, they almost fought in terms of office again. Beterbiev could potentially score his own shot in revenge in a rubber match later this year. -Coppinger
6. Rankings before Canelo Alvarez: 6
Record: 62-2-2, 39 Kos
Division: Super Middleweight (Unified Champion)
The Final Battle: W (UD12) Edgar Berlanga, September 14th
Next fight: May 3 vs William Skull
Alvarez remains an unquestioned face of boxing. Boxing is the only fighter plane that can draw both pay-per-view and gates, no matter who your opponent is. Canelo will fight William Skull in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on May 3, and will fight for the IBF title stripped away from him last year ahead of his battle with Terrence Crawford in September. After a simple victory over Jaime Munguia and Edgar Berlanga in 2024, if Canelo appears as an indisputable champion on May 3 (and without injuries), a showdown with Crawford will be set for September. -Coppinger
7. Rankings before Jesse Rodriguez: 7
Record: 21-0, 14 Kos
Division: Junior Bantamweight (Champion)
The final battle: W (TKO3) Pedro Guevara, November 9th
Next battle: TBA
Rodriguez is the next elite fighter jet, following in the footsteps of the great Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez, below 118 pounds. He has proven as much as future Hall of Fame Juan Francisco Estrada, who defeated Gonzalez twice last year. Rodriguez has yet to meet a fighter who can test him, but that could change in his next fight. “Bam” is in discussions to face Fernando Martinez with a 115-pound title unification. Martinez is underrated and has a victory over Kazuto Yoka. He is second in the junior bantamweight division in the ESPN rankings behind Rodriguez. -Coppinger
8. Rankings before David Benavidez: 10
Record: 30-0, 24 Kos
Division: Light Heavyweight (Interim Champion)
The Final Battle: W (UD12) David Morrell, February 1st
Next battle: TBA
The “Mexican monster” Mike Tyson calls Benavidez has been knocking on the door of pound for pound for pound recognition for years. He broke through in 2023 with quality victories at Caleb Factory and Demetrius Andrade for 168 pounds. Benavidez felt that these performances were enough to win a shot from champion Canelo Alvarez, but the top boxing star still denies it. Rather than chasing Alvarez, Benavides wisely moved to 175 pounds. And now, after he has a clear victory over surviving Morel in Flash Knockdown, there is no doubt about Benavidez’s skill set. He can reach yet another level if he can secure a fight against indisputable light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bibolu. -Coppinger
9. Nakatani’s Junto rankings before: n/r
Record: 30-0, 23 Kos
Division: Bantamweight (Champion)
Final Battle: W (KO3) David Cuellar Contreras, February 24th
Next battle: TBA
Nakatani is one of four Bantamweight title holders, but he has more head and shoulders than the others. Rangy Puncher scored another early KO in the third round finish of David Cuellar in Tokyo in February. It is expected that the next title will be a match against Nishida. This leads to the final super fight showdown with indisputable junior featherweight champion Naoyainouye, which is supposed to be the biggest fight in Japanese history. -Coppinger
10. Rankings before ShakurStevenson: 9
Record: 23-0, 11 Kos
Division: Lightweight (Champion)
Final Battle: W (TKO9) Josh Padry, February 22nd
Next battle: TBA
Stevenson was scheduled to fight Floyd Scofield on February 22, but a disease in Combat Week abolished the fight and inserted British fighter Josh Padley on a few days of notice. Padry, who worked as an electrician, was overmatched as Stephenson won his first stop victory in four games. Still, Stevenson’s performance was barely appealing as he didn’t take many opportunities. Perhaps he needs an elite opponent to take him to the next level. -Coppinger
Formula
The ranking is based on a descending points system, where you will receive 10 points in the first place vote and 9 points in the second place vote. Ties are the ones that go to fighters in the best rankings and have the most votes in that rankings.
Others to receive votes: Gervonta Davis (18), Teofimo Lopez Jr. (8), Vasiliy Lomachenko (4), Janibek Alimkhanuly (1).
How our writers voted
Bradley: 1. Usaik, 2. Crawford, 3: Noue, 4. Bivol, 5. Beterbiev, 6. Alvarez, 7. Rodriguez, 8. Nakatani, 9. Stevenson, 10. Davis
Coppinger: 1. Usyk, 2. Inoue, 3. Bivol, 4. Crawford, 5. Alvarez, 6. Beterbiev, 7. Rodriguez, 8. Nakatani, 9. Benavidez, 10. Davis
Atlas: 1. Usyk, 2. Crawford, 3. Inoue, 4. Bivol, 5. Beterbiev, 6. Davis, 7. Lomachenko, 8. Alvarez, 9. Rodriguez, 10. Benavidez
Teshitoa: 1. Usyk, 2. Crawford, 3. Inoue, 4. Beterbiev, 5. Bivol, 6. Nakatani, 7. Rodriguez, 8. Alvarez, 9. Stevenson, 10. Benavidez
Parkinson: 1. Usyk, 2. Inoue, 3. Crawford, 4. Bivol, 5. Beterbiev, 6. Alvarez, 7. Rodriguez, 8. Nakatani, 9. Benavidez, 10. Davis
Raskin: 1. Usyk, 2. Inoue, 3. Crawford, 4. Bivol, 5. Beterbiev, 6. Rodriguez, 7. Benavidez, 8. Alvarez, 9. Stevenson, 10. Nakatani
Osuna: 1. Usyk, 2. Crawford, 3. Inoue, 4. Bivol, 5. Alvarez, 6. Beterbiev, 7. Rodriguez, 8. Nakatani, 9. Benavidez, 10. Stevenson
Phelps: 1. Usyk, 2. Bivol, 3. Alvarez, 4. Crawford, 5. Inoue, 6. Beterbiev, 7. Lopez, 8. Rodriguez, 9. Benavidez, 10. Stevenson
Rodriguez: 1. Usyk, 2. Inoue, 3. Bivol, 4. Crawford, 5. Alvarez, 6. Beterbiev, 7. Rodriguez, 8. Stevenson, 9. Nakatani, 10. Benavidez
Wood Yard: 1. Crawford, 2. Inoue, 3. Usyk, 4. Bivol, 5. Alvarez, 6. Benavidez, 7. Davis, 8. Stevenson, 9. Lopez, 10. Beterbiev
Moynihan: 1. Usyk, 2. Inoue, 3. Crawford, 4. Bivol, 5. Alvarez, 6. Beterbiev, 7. Benavidez, 8. Stevenson, 9. Davis, 10. Rodriguez
Pilatti: 1. Usyk, 2. Inoue, 3. Bivol, 4. Crawford, 5. Beterbiev, 6. Benavidez, 7. Rodriguez, 8. Nakatani, 9. Stevenson, 10. Alimkhanuly
Zirolli: 1. Usyk, 2. Crawford, 3. Inoue, 4. Stevenson, 5. Bivol, 6. Beterbiev, 7. Alvarez, 8. Rodriguez, 9. Lopez, 10. Nakatani
Mascaro: 1. Ushik, 2. Crawford, 3. Inoue, 4. Rodriguez, 5. Bivol, 6. Beterbiev, 7. Alvarez, 8. Nakatani, 9. Benavidez, 10. Davis
Freeman: 1. Inoue, 2. Crawford, 3. Usyk, 4. Rodriguez, 5. Bivol, 6. Beterbiev, 7. Nakatani, 8. Alvarez, 9. Stevenson, 10. Davis
Lopez: 1. Usyk, 2. Inoue, 3. Crawford, 4. Bivol, 5. Alvarez, 6. Beterbiev, 7. Rodriguez, 8. Benavidez, 9. Stevenson, 10. Nakatani
Delgado Averhof: 1. Usyk, 2. Inoue, 3. Bivol, 4. Crawford, 5. Alvarez, 6. Rodriguez, 7. Beterbiev, 8. Benavidez, 9. Davis, 10. Stevenson
ESPN expert opinion poll
First location: Usyk (15), Inoue (1), Crawford (1)
2nd place: Inoue (9), Crawford (7), Bivol (1)
3rd place: Inoue (6), Crawford (4), Bivol (4), Usyk (2), Alvarez (1)
4th place: Bivol (8), Crawford (5), Rodriguez (2), Beterbiev (1), Stevenson (1)
5th place: Alvarez (7), Beterbiev (5), Vibor (4), Inoe (1)
6th place: Beterbiev (9), Alvarez (2), Rodriguez (2), Benavidez (2), Davis (1), Nakatani (1)
7th place: Rodriguez (8), Alvarez (2), Benavides (2), Beterbiev (1), Davis (1), Nakatani (1), Lopez (1), Lomachenko (1)
8th place: Nakatani (6), Alvarez (4), Stevenson (3), Rodriguez (2), Benavides (2)
9th place: Stevenson (6), Benavides (5), Davis (2), Lopez (2), Rodriguez (1), Nakatani (1)
10th place: Davis (5), Stevenson (3), Benavidez (3), Nakatani (3), Beterbiev (1), Rodriguez (1), Akhmadaliev (1)
