Tag: Daniel Dubois

Daniel Dubois caps dominating performance by stopping Jarrell Miller in final seconds

Daniel Dubois capped a dominating performance by knocking out Jarrell Miller in the final seconds of a 10-round fight Saturday.

Daniel Dubois delivered when he had to.

The Londoner stopped fellow heavyweight contender Jarrell Miller in the final seconds of a 10-round bout he had dominated on a card featuring Deontay Wilder and Anthony Joshua on Saturday in Saudi Arabia.

Dubois (20-2, 18 KOs) used stick-and-move tactics and timely toe-to-toe exchanges to outwork Miller (26-1-1, 22 KOs), who outweighed the winner by 94 pounds.

Dubois got off to a strong start, jabbing, moving and beating the slower Miller to the punch over the first three rounds. Miller came on in the fourth and fifth rounds, when he landed many of his best punches of the fight.

However, Dubois reclaimed the momentum after that and never gave it up. He landed power punches almost at will in the second half of the fight, when the 333-pound Miller grew weary.

It appeared that Dubois was destined to win a decision but a series of answered power punches forced the referee to stop the fight with only eight seconds remaining.

Dubois was coming off a ninth-round knockout loss to unified titleholder Oleksandr Usyk in August, after which many questioned his fighting spirit.

He proved his doubters wrong by making a strong statement against a capable, much bigger man, never looking better than he did on Saturday. He is now back in legitimate title contention.

Miller was in the midst of a comeback after failed drug tests derailed the New Yorker’s career.

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Photos: Deontay Wilder, Anthony Joshua weigh in for their fights on Saturday

Photos: Deontay Wilder and Anthony Joshua weighed in Friday for their separate fights on Saturday in Saudi Arabia.

Deontay Wilder and Anthony Joshua on Friday came in around their typical weights for their separate fights Saturday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (pay-per-view).

Wilder tipped the scales at 213 pounds, 1½ less than he weighed for his first-round knockout of Robert Helenius in October. His opponent, Joseph Parker Jr., was 245¼.

Joshua weighed 251, 1 more than his weight for his seventh-round KO of Helenius in August. He’s fighting Otto Wallin, who weighed 238½.

The weights for other featured fights on the card:

  • Dmitry Bivol (174½) vs. Lyndon Arthur (174¼), light heavyweights
  • Filip Hrgovic (246) vs. Mark De Mori (242½), heavyweights
  • Jai Opetaia (198½) vs. Ellis Zorro (197½), cruiserweights
  • Daniel Dubois (239) vs. Jarrell Miller (333), heavyweights
  • Arslanbek Makhmudov (262) vs. Agit Kabayel (241¼), heavyweights
  • Frank Sanchez (238) vs. Junior Fa (279), heavyweights

Here are images from the weigh-in. All photos by Fayez Nureldine / AFP via Getty Images.

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Pound-for-pound: Devin Haney continues his ascent up the Boxing Junkie list

Pound-for-pound: Devin Haney continues his ascent up the Boxing Junkie list of the best fighters in the world.

Devin Haney turned in the best performance of his career Saturday in his hometown of San Francisco, shutting out overmatched 140-pound champ Regis Prograis to win a major title in a second division.

If there was any doubt about Haney’s place among the best fighters in the world beforehand, there isn’t now.

The question we faced was whether his impressive victory merited an upgrade on Boxing Junkie’s pound-for-pound list (Top 15 plus five Honorable Mentions).

We feel it did.

Haney entered the fight ranked No. 14, one spot behind fellow young star Shakur Stevenson.

We normally wouldn’t bump a fighter up more than one or two notches after a victory over an opponent who wasn’t on the pound-for-pound list going into the fight. However, this case is unusual.

Consider three things:

  • One, Haney didn’t simply defeat Prograis, he embarrassed him. He dropped him and won every round on all three scorecards.
  • Two, he moved up in weight and directly into a world championship fight.
  • And, three, Prograis was no easy mark. He was a respected, once-beaten, two-time titleholder.

Yes, it was a special night for Haney.

As a result, he moves up to No. 10, which knocks previous No. 10 Errol Spence Jr., No. 11 Vasiliy Lomachenko, No. 12 Artur Beterbiev and Stevenson down one spot each.

Note: Spence and Lomachenko are coming off losses – Spence to Terence Crawford and Lomachenko to Haney – and Stevenson gave a shaky performance in his unanimous decision victory over Edwin De Los Santos.

Beterbiev, 38, can bounce back up the list depending on how he performs against Callum Smith on Jan. 13

Next pound-for-pounder up: Honorable mentions Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez and Sunny Edwards will face off on Saturday in Glendale, Arizona.

Here’s what the list looks like at the moment:

BOXING JUNKIE
POUND-FOR-POUND

  1. Terence Crawford – No fight scheduled.
  2. Naoya Inoue – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder Marlon Tapales for the undisputed 122-pound championship on Dec. 26 in Japan.
  3. Oleksandr Usyk – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder and No. 9 Tyson Fury for the undisputed heavyweight championship on Feb. 17 in Saudi Arabia.
  4. Dmitry Bivol – Scheduled to defend his 175-pound title against Lyndon Arthur on Dec. 23 in Saudi Arabia.
  5. Juan Francisco Estrada – No fight scheduled.
  6. Canelo Alvarez– No fight scheduled.
  7. Jermell Charlo – No fight scheduled.
  8. Gervonta Davis – No fight scheduled.
  9. Tyson Fury – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder and No. 3 Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight championship on Feb. 17 in Saudi Arabia.
  10. Devin Haney – No fight scheduled.
  11. Errol Spence Jr. – No fight scheduled.
  12. Vasiliy Lomachenko – No fight scheduled.
  13. Artur Beterbiev – Scheduled to defend his 175-pound titles against Callum Smith on Jan. 13 in Quebec City, Canada.
  14. Shakur Stevenson – No fight scheduled.
  15. David Benavidez – No fight scheduled.

Honorable mention (alphabetical order): Jermall Charlo (no fight scheduled); Sunny Edwards (scheduled to face Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez in a 112-pound title-unification bout on Dec. 16 in Glendale, Arizona); Roman Gonzalez (no fight scheduled);  Kazuto Ioka (scheduled to defend his 115-pound title against Josber Perez on New Year’s Eve in Japan); Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez (scheduled to face Sunny Edwards in a 112-pound title-unification bout on Dec. 16 in Glendale, Arizona).

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Pound-for-pound: Devin Haney continues his ascent up the Boxing Junkie list

Pound-for-pound: Devin Haney continues his ascent up the Boxing Junkie list of the best fighters in the world.

Devin Haney turned in the best performance of his career Saturday in his hometown of San Francisco, shutting out overmatched 140-pound champ Regis Prograis to win a major title in a second division.

If there was any doubt about Haney’s place among the best fighters in the world beforehand, there isn’t now.

The question we faced was whether his impressive victory merited an upgrade on Boxing Junkie’s pound-for-pound list (Top 15 plus five Honorable Mentions).

We feel it did.

Haney entered the fight ranked No. 14, one spot behind fellow young star Shakur Stevenson.

We normally wouldn’t bump a fighter up more than one or two notches after a victory over an opponent who wasn’t on the pound-for-pound list going into the fight. However, this case is unusual.

Consider three things:

  • One, Haney didn’t simply defeat Prograis, he embarrassed him. He dropped him and won every round on all three scorecards.
  • Two, he moved up in weight and directly into a world championship fight.
  • And, three, Prograis was no easy mark. He was a respected, once-beaten, two-time titleholder.

Yes, it was a special night for Haney.

As a result, he moves up to No. 10, which knocks previous No. 10 Errol Spence Jr., No. 11 Vasiliy Lomachenko, No. 12 Artur Beterbiev and Stevenson down one spot each.

Note: Spence and Lomachenko are coming off losses – Spence to Terence Crawford and Lomachenko to Haney – and Stevenson gave a shaky performance in his unanimous decision victory over Edwin De Los Santos.

Beterbiev, 38, can bounce back up the list depending on how he performs against Callum Smith on Jan. 13

Next pound-for-pounder up: Honorable mentions Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez and Sunny Edwards will face off on Saturday in Glendale, Arizona.

Here’s what the list looks like at the moment:

BOXING JUNKIE
POUND-FOR-POUND

  1. Terence Crawford – No fight scheduled.
  2. Naoya Inoue – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder Marlon Tapales for the undisputed 122-pound championship on Dec. 26 in Japan.
  3. Oleksandr Usyk – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder and No. 9 Tyson Fury for the undisputed heavyweight championship on Feb. 17 in Saudi Arabia.
  4. Dmitry Bivol – Scheduled to defend his 175-pound title against Lyndon Arthur on Dec. 23 in Saudi Arabia.
  5. Juan Francisco Estrada – No fight scheduled.
  6. Canelo Alvarez– No fight scheduled.
  7. Jermell Charlo – No fight scheduled.
  8. Gervonta Davis – No fight scheduled.
  9. Tyson Fury – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder and No. 3 Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight championship on Feb. 17 in Saudi Arabia.
  10. Devin Haney – No fight scheduled.
  11. Errol Spence Jr. – No fight scheduled.
  12. Vasiliy Lomachenko – No fight scheduled.
  13. Artur Beterbiev – Scheduled to defend his 175-pound titles against Callum Smith on Jan. 13 in Quebec City, Canada.
  14. Shakur Stevenson – No fight scheduled.
  15. David Benavidez – No fight scheduled.

Honorable mention (alphabetical order): Jermall Charlo (no fight scheduled); Sunny Edwards (scheduled to face Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez in a 112-pound title-unification bout on Dec. 16 in Glendale, Arizona); Roman Gonzalez (no fight scheduled);  Kazuto Ioka (scheduled to defend his 115-pound title against Josber Perez on New Year’s Eve in Japan); Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez (scheduled to face Sunny Edwards in a 112-pound title-unification bout on Dec. 16 in Glendale, Arizona).

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Pound-for-pound: Does David Benavidez crack Top 15 after sensational KO?

Pound-for-pound: Does David Benavidez crack the Top 15 on Boxing Junkie’s pound-for-pound list after his brutal KO of Demetrius Andrade?

This one is tricky.

David Benavidez couldn’t have looked much better than he did against Demetrius Andrade on Saturday in Las Vegas, where he put the former two-division titleholder down and pummeled him until the fight was stopped after the sixth round.

Benavidez’s stock certainly went up. However, was it enough for the Honorable Mention (going into the fight) to crack our Top 15?

Yes.

The question was how he would fit in. This is what we did:

  • No. 14 Roman Gonzalez, who has lost twice to Juan Francisco Estrada in his last three fights, drops to Honorable Mention. The 36-year-old future Hall of Famer has no fight scheduled.
  • No. 15 Devin Haney, coming off a victory over No. 11 Vasiliy Lomachenko in a close fight, moves up to No. 14. The 135-pound titleholder will challenge 140-pound champ Regis Prograis on Dec. 9, meaning his position here could change.
  • And Benavidez enters at No. 15, the highest position he has attained.

Honorable Mention Jermall Charlo, a 160-pound titleholder, held his position by outpointing smaller, but determined Jose Benavidez Jr. on the David Benavidez-Andrade card after a 2½-year layoff.

Next pound-for-pounder up: No. 14 Haney faces Prograis on Dec. 9 in San Francisco.

Here’s what the list looks like at the moment:

BOXING JUNKIE
POUND-FOR-POUND

  1. Terence Crawford – No fight scheduled.
  2. Naoya Inoue – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder Marlon Tapales for the undisputed 122-pound championship on Dec. 26 in Japan.
  3. Oleksandr Usyk – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder and No. 9 Tyson Fury for the undisputed heavyweight championship on Feb. 17 in Saudi Arabia.
  4. Dmitry Bivol – Scheduled to defend his 175-pound title against Lyndon Arthur on Dec. 23 in Saudi Arabia.
  5. Juan Francisco Estrada – No fight scheduled.
  6. Canelo Alvarez– No fight scheduled.
  7. Jermell Charlo – No fight scheduled.
  8. Gervonta Davis – No fight scheduled.
  9. Tyson Fury – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder and No. 3 Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight championship on Feb. 17 in Saudi Arabia.
  10. Errol Spence Jr. – No fight scheduled.
  11. Vasiliy Lomachenko – No fight scheduled.
  12. Artur Beterbiev – Scheduled to defend his 175-pound titles against Callum Smith on Jan. 13 in Quebec City, Canada.
  13. Shakur Stevenson – No fight scheduled.
  14. Devin Haney – Scheduled to challenge 140-pound titleholder Regis Prograis on Dec. 9 in San Francisco.
  15. David Benavidez – No fight scheduled.

Honorable mention (alphabetical order): Jermall Charlo (no fight scheduled); Sunny Edwards (scheduled to face Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez in a 112-pound title-unification bout on Dec. 16 in Glendale, Arizona); Roman Gonzalez (no fight scheduled);  Kazuto Ioka (scheduled to defend his 115-pound title against Josber Perez on New Year’s Eve in Japan); Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez (scheduled to face Sunny Edwards in a 112-pound title-unification bout on Dec. 16 in Glendale, Arizona).

[lawrence-related id=39510,39507,39503,39500,39495,39488]

Pound-for-pound: Does David Benavidez crack Top 15 after sensational KO?

Pound-for-pound: Does David Benavidez crack the Top 15 on Boxing Junkie’s pound-for-pound list after his brutal KO of Demetrius Andrade?

This one is tricky.

David Benavidez couldn’t have looked much better than he did against Demetrius Andrade on Saturday in Las Vegas, where he put the former two-division titleholder down and pummeled him until the fight was stopped after the sixth round.

Benavidez’s stock certainly went up. However, was it enough for the Honorable Mention (going into the fight) to crack our Top 15?

Yes.

The question was how he would fit in. This is what we did:

  • No. 14 Roman Gonzalez, who has lost twice to Juan Francisco Estrada in his last three fights, drops to Honorable Mention. The 36-year-old future Hall of Famer has no fight scheduled.
  • No. 15 Devin Haney, coming off a victory over No. 11 Vasiliy Lomachenko in a close fight, moves up to No. 14. The 135-pound titleholder will challenge 140-pound champ Regis Prograis on Dec. 9, meaning his position here could change.
  • And Benavidez enters at No. 15, the highest position he has attained.

Honorable Mention Jermall Charlo, a 160-pound titleholder, held his position by outpointing smaller, but determined Jose Benavidez Jr. on the David Benavidez-Andrade card after a 2½-year layoff.

Next pound-for-pounder up: No. 14 Haney faces Prograis on Dec. 9 in San Francisco.

Here’s what the list looks like at the moment:

BOXING JUNKIE
POUND-FOR-POUND

  1. Terence Crawford – No fight scheduled.
  2. Naoya Inoue – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder Marlon Tapales for the undisputed 122-pound championship on Dec. 26 in Japan.
  3. Oleksandr Usyk – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder and No. 9 Tyson Fury for the undisputed heavyweight championship on Feb. 17 in Saudi Arabia.
  4. Dmitry Bivol – Scheduled to defend his 175-pound title against Lyndon Arthur on Dec. 23 in Saudi Arabia.
  5. Juan Francisco Estrada – No fight scheduled.
  6. Canelo Alvarez– No fight scheduled.
  7. Jermell Charlo – No fight scheduled.
  8. Gervonta Davis – No fight scheduled.
  9. Tyson Fury – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder and No. 3 Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight championship on Feb. 17 in Saudi Arabia.
  10. Errol Spence Jr. – No fight scheduled.
  11. Vasiliy Lomachenko – No fight scheduled.
  12. Artur Beterbiev – Scheduled to defend his 175-pound titles against Callum Smith on Jan. 13 in Quebec City, Canada.
  13. Shakur Stevenson – No fight scheduled.
  14. Devin Haney – Scheduled to challenge 140-pound titleholder Regis Prograis on Dec. 9 in San Francisco.
  15. David Benavidez – No fight scheduled.

Honorable mention (alphabetical order): Jermall Charlo (no fight scheduled); Sunny Edwards (scheduled to face Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez in a 112-pound title-unification bout on Dec. 16 in Glendale, Arizona); Roman Gonzalez (no fight scheduled);  Kazuto Ioka (scheduled to defend his 115-pound title against Josber Perez on New Year’s Eve in Japan); Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez (scheduled to face Sunny Edwards in a 112-pound title-unification bout on Dec. 16 in Glendale, Arizona).

[lawrence-related id=39510,39507,39503,39500,39495,39488]

Pound-for-pound: Does Shakur Stevenson’s uninspiring performance impact him?

Pound-for-pound: Does Shakur Stevenson’s uninspiring performance impact him?

Shakur Stevenson remained unbeaten and won a major title in a third division but managed to draw criticism at the same time.

That’s because he refused to engage Edwin De Los Santos in his unanimous decision victory Thursday night in Las Vegas, throwing a paltry average of 17 punches per round in a boring fight.

Does that mean Stevenson — ranked No. 13 by Boxing Junkie going into the fight — drops down or falls off the list?

No.

One, he won the fight. Two, his skill set — particularly his defensive ability — was on clear display. And, three, everyone has off nights, even someone as talented as he is.

So we decided to give Stevenson the benefit of the doubt for now and then see how he does in his next fight, which could come against a more formidable opponent than De Los Santos.

We’ll add this, though: He can’t expect to barely win horrible fights and ascend to the top of the list.

Next pound-for-pounder up: Honorable Mention David Benavidez is scheduled to face Demetrius Andrade on Nov. 25 in Las Vegas (pay-per-view).

On the same card, Honorable Mention Jermall Charlo will face Jose Benavidez Jr.

Here’s what the list looks like at the moment:

BOXING JUNKIE
POUND-FOR-POUND

  1. Terence Crawford – No fight scheduled.
  2. Naoya Inoue – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder Marlon Tapales for the undisputed 122-pound championship on Dec. 26 in Japan.
  3. Oleksandr Usyk – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder and No. 9 Tyson Fury for the undisputed heavyweight championship on Feb. 17 in Saudi Arabia.
  4. Dmitry Bivol – Scheduled to defend his 175-pound title against Lyndon Arthur on Dec. 23 in Saudi Arabia.
  5. Juan Francisco Estrada – Reportedly in talks with Honorable Mention Kazuto Ioka for a title-unification New Year’s Eve bout in Japan.
  6. Canelo Alvarez– No fight scheduled.
  7. Jermell Charlo – No fight scheduled.
  8. Gervonta Davis – No fight scheduled.
  9. Tyson Fury – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder and No. 3 Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight championship on Feb. 17 in Saudi Arabia.
  10. Errol Spence Jr. – No fight scheduled.
  11. Vasiliy Lomachenko – No fight scheduled.
  12. Artur Beterbiev – Scheduled to defend his 175-pound titles against Callum Smith on Jan. 13 in Quebec City, Canada.
  13. Shakur Stevenson – No fight scheduled.
  14. Roman Gonzalez – No fight scheduled.
  15. Devin Haney – Scheduled to challenge 140-pound titleholder Regis Prograis on Dec. 9 in San Francisco.

Honorable mention (alphabetical order): David Benavidez (scheduled to face Demetrius Andrade on Nov. 25 in Las Vegas); Jermall Charlo (scheduled to face Jose Benavidez Jr. on Nov. 25 in Las Vegas); Sunny Edwards (scheduled to face Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez in a 112-pound title-unification bout on Dec. 16 in Glendale, Arizona); Kazuto Ioka (reportedly in talks with No. 6 Juan Francisco Estrada for a title-unification New Year’s Eve bout in Japan); Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez (scheduled to face Sunny Edwards in a 112-pound title-unification bout on Dec. 16 in Glendale, Arizona).

[lawrence-related id=39510,39507,39503,39500,39495,39488]

Pound-for-pound: Does Shakur Stevenson’s uninspiring performance impact him?

Pound-for-pound: Does Shakur Stevenson’s uninspiring performance impact him?

Shakur Stevenson remained unbeaten and won a major title in a third division but managed to draw criticism at the same time.

That’s because he refused to engage Edwin De Los Santos in his unanimous decision victory Thursday night in Las Vegas, throwing a paltry average of 17 punches per round in a boring fight.

Does that mean Stevenson — ranked No. 13 by Boxing Junkie going into the fight — drops down or falls off the list?

No.

One, he won the fight. Two, his skill set — particularly his defensive ability — was on clear display. And, three, everyone has off nights, even someone as talented as he is.

So we decided to give Stevenson the benefit of the doubt for now and then see how he does in his next fight, which could come against a more formidable opponent than De Los Santos.

We’ll add this, though: He can’t expect to barely win horrible fights and ascend to the top of the list.

Next pound-for-pounder up: Honorable Mention David Benavidez is scheduled to face Demetrius Andrade on Nov. 25 in Las Vegas (pay-per-view).

On the same card, Honorable Mention Jermall Charlo will face Jose Benavidez Jr.

Here’s what the list looks like at the moment:

BOXING JUNKIE
POUND-FOR-POUND

  1. Terence Crawford – No fight scheduled.
  2. Naoya Inoue – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder Marlon Tapales for the undisputed 122-pound championship on Dec. 26 in Japan.
  3. Oleksandr Usyk – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder and No. 9 Tyson Fury for the undisputed heavyweight championship on Feb. 17 in Saudi Arabia.
  4. Dmitry Bivol – Scheduled to defend his 175-pound title against Lyndon Arthur on Dec. 23 in Saudi Arabia.
  5. Juan Francisco Estrada – Reportedly in talks with Honorable Mention Kazuto Ioka for a title-unification New Year’s Eve bout in Japan.
  6. Canelo Alvarez– No fight scheduled.
  7. Jermell Charlo – No fight scheduled.
  8. Gervonta Davis – No fight scheduled.
  9. Tyson Fury – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder and No. 3 Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight championship on Feb. 17 in Saudi Arabia.
  10. Errol Spence Jr. – No fight scheduled.
  11. Vasiliy Lomachenko – No fight scheduled.
  12. Artur Beterbiev – Scheduled to defend his 175-pound titles against Callum Smith on Jan. 13 in Quebec City, Canada.
  13. Shakur Stevenson – No fight scheduled.
  14. Roman Gonzalez – No fight scheduled.
  15. Devin Haney – Scheduled to challenge 140-pound titleholder Regis Prograis on Dec. 9 in San Francisco.

Honorable mention (alphabetical order): David Benavidez (scheduled to face Demetrius Andrade on Nov. 25 in Las Vegas); Jermall Charlo (scheduled to face Jose Benavidez Jr. on Nov. 25 in Las Vegas); Sunny Edwards (scheduled to face Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez in a 112-pound title-unification bout on Dec. 16 in Glendale, Arizona); Kazuto Ioka (reportedly in talks with No. 6 Juan Francisco Estrada for a title-unification New Year’s Eve bout in Japan); Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez (scheduled to face Sunny Edwards in a 112-pound title-unification bout on Dec. 16 in Glendale, Arizona).

[lawrence-related id=39510,39507,39503,39500,39495,39488]

Pound-for-pound: Does Tyson Fury’s weak performance merit demotion?

Pound-for-pound: Does Tyson Fury’s weak performance merit demotion on Boxing Junkie’s pound-for-pound list?

Tyson Fury won the fight but lost respect.

Boxing Junkie’s No. 5 fighter pound-for-pound going into his meeting with MMA star Francis Ngannou on Saturday in Saudi Arabia was put on the canvas and had to rally to win a split decision.

Fury’s performance arguably was one of the worst by a heavyweight champion who maintained his title.

So where does that leave him on Boxing Junkie’s pound-for-pound list? That’s tricky.

He embarrassed himself and boxing by barely beating an opponent who was making his professional boxing debut, which merits demotion. At the same time, he did do what it took to have his hand raised and remain unbeaten after the 10-round bout.

In the end, we decided we had no choice but to drop him down the list — but not too far — given his weak performance against an inexperienced opponent.

He falls from No. 5 to No. 9 as he begins preparation to face talented, experienced fellow titleholder Oleksandr Usyk on an unspecified date this winter, which will give him the opportunity to prove he still belongs on this list at all.

Next pound-for-pounder up: 135-pound champion Devin Haney, No. 15 on the list, is scheduled to challenge unranked 140-pound titleholder Regis Prograis on Dec. 9 in San Francisco.

Here’s what the list looks like at the moment:

BOXING JUNKIE
POUND-FOR-POUND

  1. Terence Crawford – No fight scheduled.
  2. Naoya Inoue – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder Marlon Tapales for the undisputed 122-pound championship on Dec. 26 in Japan.
  3. Oleksandr Usyk – Has agreed to face fellow titleholder Tyson Fury for the undisputed heavyweight championship this winter in Saudi Arabia.
  4. Dmitry Bivol – No fight scheduled.
  5. Juan Francisco Estrada – Reportedly in talks with Honorable Mention Kazuto Ioka for a title-unification New Year’s Eve bout in Japan.
  6. Canelo Alvarez– No fight scheduled.
  7. Jermell Charlo – No fight scheduled.
  8. Gervonta Davis – No fight scheduled.
  9. Tyson Fury – Has agreed to face fellow titleholder Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight championship this winter in Saudi Arabia.
  10. Errol Spence Jr. – No fight scheduled.
  11. Vasiliy Lomachenko – No fight scheduled.
  12. Artur Beterbiev – Scheduled to defend his 175-pound titles against Callum Smith on Jan. 13 in Quebec City, Canada.
  13. Shakur Stevenson – No fight scheduled.
  14. Roman Gonzalez – No fight scheduled.
  15. Devin Haney – Scheduled to challenge 140-pound titleholder Regis Prograis on Dec. 9 in San Francisco.

Honorable mention (alphabetical order): David Benavidez (scheduled to face Demetrius Andrade on Nov. 25 in Las Vegas); Jermall Charlo (scheduled to face Jose Benavidez Jr. on Nov. 25 in Las Vegas); Sunny Edwards (scheduled to face Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez in a 112-pound title-unification bout on Dec. 16 in Glendale, Arizona); Kazuto Ioka (reportedly in talks with No. 6 Juan Francisco Estrada for a title-unification New Year’s Eve bout in Japan); Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez (scheduled to face Sunny Edwards in a 112-pound title-unification bout on Dec. 16 in Glendale, Arizona).

[lawrence-related id=39510,39507,39503,39500,39495,39488]

Pound-for-pound: Does Tyson Fury’s weak performance merit demotion?

Pound-for-pound: Does Tyson Fury’s weak performance merit demotion on Boxing Junkie’s pound-for-pound list?

Tyson Fury won the fight but lost respect.

Boxing Junkie’s No. 5 fighter pound-for-pound going into his meeting with MMA star Francis Ngannou on Saturday in Saudi Arabia was put on the canvas and had to rally to win a split decision.

Fury’s performance arguably was one of the worst by a heavyweight champion who maintained his title.

So where does that leave him on Boxing Junkie’s pound-for-pound list? That’s tricky.

He embarrassed himself and boxing by barely beating an opponent who was making his professional boxing debut, which merits demotion. At the same time, he did do what it took to have his hand raised and remain unbeaten after the 10-round bout.

In the end, we decided we had no choice but to drop him down the list — but not too far — given his weak performance against an inexperienced opponent.

He falls from No. 5 to No. 9 as he begins preparation to face talented, experienced fellow titleholder Oleksandr Usyk on an unspecified date this winter, which will give him the opportunity to prove he still belongs on this list at all.

Next pound-for-pounder up: 135-pound champion Devin Haney, No. 15 on the list, is scheduled to challenge unranked 140-pound titleholder Regis Prograis on Dec. 9 in San Francisco.

Here’s what the list looks like at the moment:

BOXING JUNKIE
POUND-FOR-POUND

  1. Terence Crawford – No fight scheduled.
  2. Naoya Inoue – Scheduled to face fellow titleholder Marlon Tapales for the undisputed 122-pound championship on Dec. 26 in Japan.
  3. Oleksandr Usyk – Has agreed to face fellow titleholder Tyson Fury for the undisputed heavyweight championship this winter in Saudi Arabia.
  4. Dmitry Bivol – No fight scheduled.
  5. Juan Francisco Estrada – Reportedly in talks with Honorable Mention Kazuto Ioka for a title-unification New Year’s Eve bout in Japan.
  6. Canelo Alvarez– No fight scheduled.
  7. Jermell Charlo – No fight scheduled.
  8. Gervonta Davis – No fight scheduled.
  9. Tyson Fury – Has agreed to face fellow titleholder Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight championship this winter in Saudi Arabia.
  10. Errol Spence Jr. – No fight scheduled.
  11. Vasiliy Lomachenko – No fight scheduled.
  12. Artur Beterbiev – Scheduled to defend his 175-pound titles against Callum Smith on Jan. 13 in Quebec City, Canada.
  13. Shakur Stevenson – No fight scheduled.
  14. Roman Gonzalez – No fight scheduled.
  15. Devin Haney – Scheduled to challenge 140-pound titleholder Regis Prograis on Dec. 9 in San Francisco.

Honorable mention (alphabetical order): David Benavidez (scheduled to face Demetrius Andrade on Nov. 25 in Las Vegas); Jermall Charlo (scheduled to face Jose Benavidez Jr. on Nov. 25 in Las Vegas); Sunny Edwards (scheduled to face Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez in a 112-pound title-unification bout on Dec. 16 in Glendale, Arizona); Kazuto Ioka (reportedly in talks with No. 6 Juan Francisco Estrada for a title-unification New Year’s Eve bout in Japan); Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez (scheduled to face Sunny Edwards in a 112-pound title-unification bout on Dec. 16 in Glendale, Arizona).

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