Tag: Jermell Charlo

Tim Tszyu pounds his way to one-sided victory over Brian Mendoza

Tim Tszyu pounded his way to a one-sided victory over Brian Mendoza on Sunday in Australia.

Tim Tszyu now feels like a true champion. And bigger things lie ahead.

The Australian star, who recently was upgraded to full WBO 154-pound titleholder, defeated challenger Brian Mendoza by a unanimous decision in his first defense Sunday in Broadbeach, Australia.

The scores were 117-111 (nine rounds to three), 116-111 and 116-112.

Tszyu (24-0, 17 KOs) had said beforehand that he was approaching the fight as if it were for the vacant title because he hadn’t won it in the ring.

And he fought with the passion of a man seeking his first major belt.

Mendoza (22-3, 16 KOs) was a problem in the first half of the fight, during which the hard-punching American – coming off knockouts of Jeison Rosario and Sebastian Fundora – arguably outworked the champion.

However, Tszyu, took firm control of the fight from the seventh round on. He played the role of the power puncher, landing heavy blow after heavy blow — including a number of punishing uppercuts — to pull away from Mendoza on the scorecards.

Mendoza demonstrated impressive resilience – a lesser opponent wouldn’t have survived – but he had neither the skill set nor the firepower to withstand Tszyu’s attack.

According to CompuBox, Tszyu outlanded Mendoza 120 (of 406) to 93 (of 433) overall and 98 (of 258) to 71 (of 225) in power punches.

Tszyu has now beaten in succession Terrell Gausha, Tony Harrison, Carlos Ocampo and Brian Mendoza, a run that has lifted him to the top of the junior middleweight division.

However, he told many outlets before the Mendoza fight that he won’t be satisfied until he beats the longtime 154-pound king: Jermell Charlo, who chose to fight Canelo Alvarez instead of Tszyu and lost a one-sided decision on Sept. 30.

Charlo said after his setback that he planned to back down to 154, which could set up one of the most-compelling matchups in the sport.

“Charlo, where you at?” Tszyu said after his victory. “Where you at buddy? In his delusional head, he’ll probably think he is going to beat me. Come get it.”

Tim Tszyu pounds his way to one-sided victory over Brian Mendoza

Tim Tszyu pounded his way to a one-sided victory over Brian Mendoza on Sunday in Australia.

Tim Tszyu now feels like a true champion. And bigger things lie ahead.

The Australian star, who recently was upgraded to full WBO 154-pound titleholder, defeated challenger Brian Mendoza by a unanimous decision in his first defense Sunday in Broadbeach, Australia.

The scores were 117-111 (nine rounds to three), 116-111 and 116-112.

Tszyu (24-0, 17 KOs) had said beforehand that he was approaching the fight as if it were for the vacant title because he hadn’t won it in the ring.

And he fought with the passion of a man seeking his first major belt.

Mendoza (22-3, 16 KOs) was a problem in the first half of the fight, during which the hard-punching American – coming off knockouts of Jeison Rosario and Sebastian Fundora – arguably outworked the champion.

However, Tszyu, took firm control of the fight from the seventh round on. He played the role of the power puncher, landing heavy blow after heavy blow — including a number of punishing uppercuts — to pull away from Mendoza on the scorecards.

Mendoza demonstrated impressive resilience – a lesser opponent wouldn’t have survived – but he had neither the skill set nor the firepower to withstand Tszyu’s attack.

According to CompuBox, Tszyu outlanded Mendoza 120 (of 406) to 93 (of 433) overall and 98 (of 258) to 71 (of 225) in power punches.

Tszyu has now beaten in succession Terrell Gausha, Tony Harrison, Carlos Ocampo and Brian Mendoza, a run that has lifted him to the top of the junior middleweight division.

However, he told many outlets before the Mendoza fight that he won’t be satisfied until he beats the longtime 154-pound king: Jermell Charlo, who chose to fight Canelo Alvarez instead of Tszyu and lost a one-sided decision on Sept. 30.

Charlo said after his setback that he planned to back down to 154, which could set up one of the most-compelling matchups in the sport.

“Charlo, where you at?” Tszyu said after his victory. “Where you at buddy? In his delusional head, he’ll probably think he is going to beat me. Come get it.”

Great Eight: Tyson Fury’s championship will be on the line twice in coming months

Great Eight: Tyson Fury’s championship will be on the line twice in the coming months, against Francis Ngannou and then Oleksandr Usyk.

The proliferation of titles makes it difficult for all but the most astute fans to determine the cream of the boxing crop.

That’s why Boxing Junkie came up with its “Great Eight” feature, which names the best fighter in each of the original eight weight classes –heavyweight, light heavyweight, middleweight, welterweight, lightweight, featherweight, bantamweight and flyweight.

Heavyweight includes cruiserweight (and the WBC’s bridgerweight), light heavyweight includes super middleweight, middleweight includes junior middleweight and so on down to flyweight, which includes junior flyweight and strawweight.

In this installment of “Great Eight,” we point out that we could see a change in the heavyweight division for the first time since this feature was created.

Unbeaten champion Tyson Fury will be fighting twice within a span of few months.

“The Gypsy King” is scheduled to face MMA star and boxing newbie Francis Ngannou in a sanctioned bout Oct. 28 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, which is a ridiculous mismatch aside from the money both men stand to make. (Fury reportedly will earn more than $120 million.)

Ngannou, a strong man, would have to land a lucky punch to win but that’s highly unlikely given the enormous gap in boxing ability and experience.

The genuine challenge for Fury reportedly will come in late December or perhaps early next year in Saudi Arabia, where the Englishman and fellow titleholder Oleksandr Usyk of Ukraine are scheduled to fight for the undisputed championship.

Who wins that fight? That’s a tricky question. A gargantuan (6-foot-9) heavyweight with Fury’s skillset doesn’t appear to be the best style matchup for the former cruiserweight champion. That’s why Fury is about a 2½-1 favorite over Usyk at the moment.

However, Usyk, a former Olympic champion, is so gifted that he can’t be counted out of any fight. After all, he did outpoint Anthony Joshua in back-to-back fights.

The odds say we won’t see a new Great Eight heavyweight champion but, again, Ngannou has the power (if nothing else) and Usyk has the ability to surprise us.

Here are the top fighters in the original eight divisions:

HEAVYWEIGHT

Tyson Fury (33-0-1, 24 KOs) – The top big man has a gimmie in his next fight, a lucrative matchup against MMA star Francis Ngannou on Oct. 28. A showdown with fellow titleholder Usyk for all the belts will come as soon as Dec. 23.

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT

Dmitry Bivol (21-0, 11 KOs) – A rematch with Canelo Alvarez could be in the offing after the Mexican star easily outpointed Jermell Charlo on Sept. 30. Bivol defeated Alvarez by a unanimous decision in May of last year. Canelo wants revenge.

MIDDLEWEIGHT

Jermell Charlo (35-1-1, 19 KOs) – The 154-pound champ failed in his bid to take Alvarez’s titles but retains three of the four major junior middleweight belts. He wants to fight pound-for-pound and welterweight king Terence Crawford or he could face the winner of the fight between fellow titleholder Tim Tszyu and Brian Mendoza on Oct. 14 (Oct. 15 in Australia).

WELTERWEIGHT

Terence Crawford (40-0, 31 KOs) – Crawford left no doubt that he’s the best at 147 (and 140) with his sensational ninth-round knockout of rival Errol Spence Jr. on July 29. It will be difficult for him to top that performance.

LIGHTWEIGHT

Gervonta Davis (29-0, 27 KOs) – Devin Haney still has the belts at 135 pounds. Shakur Stevenson might be the most gifted in the division. But it’s “Tank” who has made the strongest impression and has the deepest resume.

FEATHERWEIGHT

Naoya Inoue (25-0, 22 KOs) – Inoue turned in a Crawford-like performance on July 25 in Tokyo, where he dismantled Stephen Fulton Jr. in eight rounds to underscore his greatness and become champ of a second Great Eight division.

BANTAMWEIGHT

Juan Francisco Estrada (44-3, 28 KOs) – The 33-year-old Mexican replaces Inoue as the top man here because of his body of work, which includes two victories over the great Roman Gonzalez in his last three fights.

FLYWEIGHT

Sunny Edwards (20-0, 4 KOs) – The slick Englishman will be defending his spot here on Dec. 16 in Phoenix, where he’ll take on Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez in a 112-pound title-unification bout. The winner will be king here.

[lawrence-related id=39265,39252,39118,38989,38974,38906,38902,38798,38789]

Great Eight: Tyson Fury’s championship will be on the line twice in coming months

Great Eight: Tyson Fury’s championship will be on the line twice in the coming months, against Francis Ngannou and then Oleksandr Usyk.

The proliferation of titles makes it difficult for all but the most astute fans to determine the cream of the boxing crop.

That’s why Boxing Junkie came up with its “Great Eight” feature, which names the best fighter in each of the original eight weight classes –heavyweight, light heavyweight, middleweight, welterweight, lightweight, featherweight, bantamweight and flyweight.

Heavyweight includes cruiserweight (and the WBC’s bridgerweight), light heavyweight includes super middleweight, middleweight includes junior middleweight and so on down to flyweight, which includes junior flyweight and strawweight.

In this installment of “Great Eight,” we point out that we could see a change in the heavyweight division for the first time since this feature was created.

Unbeaten champion Tyson Fury will be fighting twice within a span of few months.

“The Gypsy King” is scheduled to face MMA star and boxing newbie Francis Ngannou in a sanctioned bout Oct. 28 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, which is a ridiculous mismatch aside from the money both men stand to make. (Fury reportedly will earn more than $120 million.)

Ngannou, a strong man, would have to land a lucky punch to win but that’s highly unlikely given the enormous gap in boxing ability and experience.

The genuine challenge for Fury reportedly will come in late December or perhaps early next year in Saudi Arabia, where the Englishman and fellow titleholder Oleksandr Usyk of Ukraine are scheduled to fight for the undisputed championship.

Who wins that fight? That’s a tricky question. A gargantuan (6-foot-9) heavyweight with Fury’s skillset doesn’t appear to be the best style matchup for the former cruiserweight champion. That’s why Fury is about a 2½-1 favorite over Usyk at the moment.

However, Usyk, a former Olympic champion, is so gifted that he can’t be counted out of any fight. After all, he did outpoint Anthony Joshua in back-to-back fights.

The odds say we won’t see a new Great Eight heavyweight champion but, again, Ngannou has the power (if nothing else) and Usyk has the ability to surprise us.

Here are the top fighters in the original eight divisions:

HEAVYWEIGHT

Tyson Fury (33-0-1, 24 KOs) – The top big man has a gimmie in his next fight, a lucrative matchup against MMA star Francis Ngannou on Oct. 28. A showdown with fellow titleholder Usyk for all the belts will come as soon as Dec. 23.

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT

Dmitry Bivol (21-0, 11 KOs) – A rematch with Canelo Alvarez could be in the offing after the Mexican star easily outpointed Jermell Charlo on Sept. 30. Bivol defeated Alvarez by a unanimous decision in May of last year. Canelo wants revenge.

MIDDLEWEIGHT

Jermell Charlo (35-1-1, 19 KOs) – The 154-pound champ failed in his bid to take Alvarez’s titles but retains three of the four major junior middleweight belts. He wants to fight pound-for-pound and welterweight king Terence Crawford or he could face the winner of the fight between fellow titleholder Tim Tszyu and Brian Mendoza on Oct. 14 (Oct. 15 in Australia).

WELTERWEIGHT

Terence Crawford (40-0, 31 KOs) – Crawford left no doubt that he’s the best at 147 (and 140) with his sensational ninth-round knockout of rival Errol Spence Jr. on July 29. It will be difficult for him to top that performance.

LIGHTWEIGHT

Gervonta Davis (29-0, 27 KOs) – Devin Haney still has the belts at 135 pounds. Shakur Stevenson might be the most gifted in the division. But it’s “Tank” who has made the strongest impression and has the deepest resume.

FEATHERWEIGHT

Naoya Inoue (25-0, 22 KOs) – Inoue turned in a Crawford-like performance on July 25 in Tokyo, where he dismantled Stephen Fulton Jr. in eight rounds to underscore his greatness and become champ of a second Great Eight division.

BANTAMWEIGHT

Juan Francisco Estrada (44-3, 28 KOs) – The 33-year-old Mexican replaces Inoue as the top man here because of his body of work, which includes two victories over the great Roman Gonzalez in his last three fights.

FLYWEIGHT

Sunny Edwards (20-0, 4 KOs) – The slick Englishman will be defending his spot here on Dec. 16 in Phoenix, where he’ll take on Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez in a 112-pound title-unification bout. The winner will be king here.

[lawrence-related id=39265,39252,39118,38989,38974,38906,38902,38798,38789]

Fighter of the Month: Who else? The rejuvenated Canelo Alvarez

Fighter of the Month: Who else? The rejuvenated Canelo Alvarez.

Canelo Alvarez’s career was on the line.

The Mexican star seemed to be a once-great fighter in decline his past three fights, a loss to Dmitry Bivol and victories over Gennadiy Golovkin and John Ryder. He blamed his performances on a wrist injury but the masses weren’t convinced.

Until this past Saturday, that is.

Alvarez (60-2-2, 39 KOs) looked like the dominating champion of old, attacking challenger Jermell Charlo with passion and effectiveness, putting the 154-pound champ down once and winning a one-sided decision to retain his 168-pound titles and silence his critics.

Thus, he was a no-brainer for Boxing Junkie’s Fighter of the Month for September.

The fact that Charlo (35-2-1, 19 KOs) moved up two weight classes to face Alvarez – as well as the winner’s inability to stop him – should limit the praise we heap upon the 33-year-old future first-ballot Hall of Famer.

However, we saw what we saw, a great champion who fought with the fire and sharpness that was missing in his previous three fights. He told us beforehand that he was healthy for the first time in years, which would allow him to perform at his best. He then proved it in the ring.

And don’t make too much of the fact Charlo didn’t get stopped. He fought in something akin to a survival mode, reluctant to engage for fear of getting hurt. When a boxer as clever as Charlo assumes that posture, it’s difficult for anyone to knock him out.

If Charlo had fought more aggressively, the fight wouldn’t have lasted 12 rounds.

Was it among the greatest performances of Alvarez’s career? Probably not. He has passed more difficult tests. Was it a special performance? Absolutely, given the importance of the fight for him and the perception of Charlo going into it.

“Nobody can beat this Canelo,” he said. And he might be right.

Alvarez didn’t want to talk about the future after his victory, preferring to savor the moment. However, you can bet he’d like another crack at Bivol, the 175-pound champ who easily outpointed Alvarez in May of last year.

Following his uninspiring victory over Ryder, it was almost inconceivable that Alvarez could turn the tables on Bivol, a terrific boxer and the naturally bigger man.

The Russian probably would be favored in the rematch given his dominance in the first fight. However, after what we saw on Saturday, it seems plausible that a healthy Alvarez could perform better and perhaps exact revenge.

That was what made his convincing victory over Charlo so significant: It changed the way he’s perceived, which is a significant accomplishment.

[lawrence-related id=39255,39244,39237,39233,39227,39198,39194]

Fighter of the Month: Who else? The rejuvenated Canelo Alvarez

Fighter of the Month: Who else? The rejuvenated Canelo Alvarez.

Canelo Alvarez’s career was on the line.

The Mexican star seemed to be a once-great fighter in decline his past three fights, a loss to Dmitry Bivol and victories over Gennadiy Golovkin and John Ryder. He blamed his performances on a wrist injury but the masses weren’t convinced.

Until this past Saturday, that is.

Alvarez (60-2-2, 39 KOs) looked like the dominating champion of old, attacking challenger Jermell Charlo with passion and effectiveness, putting the 154-pound champ down once and winning a one-sided decision to retain his 168-pound titles and silence his critics.

Thus, he was a no-brainer for Boxing Junkie’s Fighter of the Month for September.

The fact that Charlo (35-2-1, 19 KOs) moved up two weight classes to face Alvarez – as well as the winner’s inability to stop him – should limit the praise we heap upon the 33-year-old future first-ballot Hall of Famer.

However, we saw what we saw, a great champion who fought with the fire and sharpness that was missing in his previous three fights. He told us beforehand that he was healthy for the first time in years, which would allow him to perform at his best. He then proved it in the ring.

And don’t make too much of the fact Charlo didn’t get stopped. He fought in something akin to a survival mode, reluctant to engage for fear of getting hurt. When a boxer as clever as Charlo assumes that posture, it’s difficult for anyone to knock him out.

If Charlo had fought more aggressively, the fight wouldn’t have lasted 12 rounds.

Was it among the greatest performances of Alvarez’s career? Probably not. He has passed more difficult tests. Was it a special performance? Absolutely, given the importance of the fight for him and the perception of Charlo going into it.

“Nobody can beat this Canelo,” he said. And he might be right.

Alvarez didn’t want to talk about the future after his victory, preferring to savor the moment. However, you can bet he’d like another crack at Bivol, the 175-pound champ who easily outpointed Alvarez in May of last year.

Following his uninspiring victory over Ryder, it was almost inconceivable that Alvarez could turn the tables on Bivol, a terrific boxer and the naturally bigger man.

The Russian probably would be favored in the rematch given his dominance in the first fight. However, after what we saw on Saturday, it seems plausible that a healthy Alvarez could perform better and perhaps exact revenge.

That was what made his convincing victory over Charlo so significant: It changed the way he’s perceived, which is a significant accomplishment.

[lawrence-related id=39255,39244,39237,39233,39227,39198,39194]

Tim Tszyu on Jermell Charlo’s performance against Canelo Alvarez: ‘Just there to survive’

Tim Tszyu on Jermell Charlo’s performance against Canelo Alvarez this past Saturday: ‘I think he was there just there to survive.”

Tim Tszyu was supposed to have fought Jermell Charlo before the 154-pound king made the decision to move up two divisions to challenge Canelo Alvarez last Saturday. And Tszyu still wants that fight, which he believes would leave no doubt about who is the best junior middleweight.

The newly upgraded WBO champ doesn’t think much of Charlo at the moment, though.

Tszyu, who faces Brian Mendoza on Oct. 14 in Australia (Showtime) watched the Alvarez-Charlo fight with the rest of us. And he wasn’t impressed with the effort of Charlo, who wasn’t competitive and lost a one-sided decision.

“I think he was just there to survive, honestly,” Tszyu told Boxing Junkie. “He looked like a scared boy, in my opinion. Canelo pressed it, did what he had to do. He sort of annihilated him every round. What surprised me is that [Charlo] really didn’t put up much of a game.

“When I was watching Spence-Crawford, Spence went out on his shield. Even though things weren’t working, he was trying to win, trying to figure it out. He went out on his shield the way a fighter should. Charlo was there just to survive, to say he accomplished 12 rounds with Canelo. That’s what he wanted.”

Tszyu (23-0, 17 KOs) was upgraded by the WBO from “interim” to full champion — his first major title — when the Alvarez-Charlo opening bell sounded.

When he was asked what that meant to him, he paused and then gave a straight forward answer: He won’t feel as if he’s a true champion until he beats Mendoza (22-2, 16 KOs). And he won’t be completely satisfied until he takes down Charlo, who still holds three of the four major 154-pound titles.

Charlo has been dismissive of a potential fight with Tszyu, although he didn’t rule it out when he was asked about the possibility after his loss. However, he appears to be focused on luring 147-pound champion Terence Crawford into the ring, which Tszyu dismissed as Charlo “chasing money.”

Tszyu remains hopeful that he’ll meet Charlo, though.

“I don’t think Charlo has as many options as he thinks,” Tszyu said. “There aren’t too many people out there. Once we finish this fight, I think it does make sense.”

In a perfect world Tszyu would’ve beaten Charlo to win his first world title, not claiming it outside the ring. And he’s as confident as ever that he’d win that fight.

“A hundred percent,” he said. “That’s the guy I’ve been chasing for a year and half now. Even if no world titles are involved, that’s the name I wanted. … I saw it from a long time ago that he’s vulnerable. I never saw that competitive edge in him. That showed [on Saturday].”

Tim Tszyu on Jermell Charlo’s performance against Canelo Alvarez: ‘Just there to survive’

Tim Tszyu on Jermell Charlo’s performance against Canelo Alvarez this past Saturday: ‘I think he was there just there to survive.”

Tim Tszyu was supposed to have fought Jermell Charlo before the 154-pound king made the decision to move up two divisions to challenge Canelo Alvarez last Saturday. And Tszyu still wants that fight, which he believes would leave no doubt about who is the best junior middleweight.

The newly upgraded WBO champ doesn’t think much of Charlo at the moment, though.

Tszyu, who faces Brian Mendoza on Oct. 14 in Australia (Showtime) watched the Alvarez-Charlo fight with the rest of us. And he wasn’t impressed with the effort of Charlo, who wasn’t competitive and lost a one-sided decision.

“I think he was just there to survive, honestly,” Tszyu told Boxing Junkie. “He looked like a scared boy, in my opinion. Canelo pressed it, did what he had to do. He sort of annihilated him every round. What surprised me is that [Charlo] really didn’t put up much of a game.

“When I was watching Spence-Crawford, Spence went out on his shield. Even though things weren’t working, he was trying to win, trying to figure it out. He went out on his shield the way a fighter should. Charlo was there just to survive, to say he accomplished 12 rounds with Canelo. That’s what he wanted.”

Tszyu (23-0, 17 KOs) was upgraded by the WBO from “interim” to full champion — his first major title — when the Alvarez-Charlo opening bell sounded.

When he was asked what that meant to him, he paused and then gave a straight forward answer: He won’t feel as if he’s a true champion until he beats Mendoza (22-2, 16 KOs). And he won’t be completely satisfied until he takes down Charlo, who still holds three of the four major 154-pound titles.

Charlo has been dismissive of a potential fight with Tszyu, although he didn’t rule it out when he was asked about the possibility after his loss. However, he appears to be focused on luring 147-pound champion Terence Crawford into the ring, which Tszyu dismissed as Charlo “chasing money.”

Tszyu remains hopeful that he’ll meet Charlo, though.

“I don’t think Charlo has as many options as he thinks,” Tszyu said. “There aren’t too many people out there. Once we finish this fight, I think it does make sense.”

In a perfect world Tszyu would’ve beaten Charlo to win his first world title, not claiming it outside the ring. And he’s as confident as ever that he’d win that fight.

“A hundred percent,” he said. “That’s the guy I’ve been chasing for a year and half now. Even if no world titles are involved, that’s the name I wanted. … I saw it from a long time ago that he’s vulnerable. I never saw that competitive edge in him. That showed [on Saturday].”

Pound-for-pound: Did Canelo Alvarez earn upgrade with impressive performance?

Pound-for-pound: Did Canelo Alvarez earn an upgrade after his dominating victory over Jermell Charlo on Saturday?

Super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez proved that he remains one of the best in the business by easily outpointing challenger Jermell Charlo on Saturday in Las Vegas.

But did the Mexican star, ranked No. 7 going into the fight, do enough to rise on the pound-for-pound list?

And what about Charlo? Did the 154-pound titleholder, ranked No. 8, take a tumble based on his disappointing performance in his unanimous-decision setback?

No and yes.

We couldn’t justify elevating Alvarez based on a victory over an opponent who moved up two weight classes for the fight, even one as talented and experienced as Charlo. Thus, Alvarez remains at No. 7 for now.

For the record: No. 6 Juan Francisco Estrada hasn’t lost since 2018 and defeated future Hall of Famer Roman Gonzalez twice in his last three fights.

And while we didn’t want to penalize Charlo too harshly after he came up short on a difficult assignment, we felt his inability to make the fight competitive merited a slight demotion.

Charlo swaps places with unbeaten Gervonta Davis, who was No. 8 going into the weekend.

Next pound-for-pounder up: Tyson Fury is scheduled to face MMA star Francis Ngannou in a boxing match on Oct. 28 in Saudi Arabia.

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

BOXING JUNKIE
POUND-FOR-POUND

  1. Terence Crawford – No fight scheduled.
  2. Naoya Inoue – No fight scheduled.
  3. Oleksandr Usyk – No fight scheduled.
  4. Dmitry Bivol – No fight scheduled.
  5. Tyson Fury – Scheduled to face MMA star Francis Ngannou in a boxing match on Oct. 28 in Saudi Arabia.
  6. Juan Francisco Estrada – Reportedly in talks with Honorable Mention Kazuto Ioka for a title-unification New Year’s Eve bout in Japan.
  7. Canelo Alvarez– No fight scheduled.
  8. Jermell Charlo – No fight scheduled.
  9. Gervonta Davis – No fight scheduled.
  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 Smit 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 (no fight scheduled); Jermall Charlo (no fight scheduled); Sunny Edwards (scheduled to face Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez in a 112-pound title-unification bout on Dec. 16); 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).

[lawrence-related id=39237,39233,39227,39198,39194]

Pound-for-pound: Did Canelo Alvarez earn upgrade with impressive performance?

Pound-for-pound: Did Canelo Alvarez earn an upgrade after his dominating victory over Jermell Charlo on Saturday?

Super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez proved that he remains one of the best in the business by easily outpointing challenger Jermell Charlo on Saturday in Las Vegas.

But did the Mexican star, ranked No. 7 going into the fight, do enough to rise on the pound-for-pound list?

And what about Charlo? Did the 154-pound titleholder, ranked No. 8, take a tumble based on his disappointing performance in his unanimous-decision setback?

No and yes.

We couldn’t justify elevating Alvarez based on a victory over an opponent who moved up two weight classes for the fight, even one as talented and experienced as Charlo. Thus, Alvarez remains at No. 7 for now.

For the record: No. 6 Juan Francisco Estrada hasn’t lost since 2018 and defeated future Hall of Famer Roman Gonzalez twice in his last three fights.

And while we didn’t want to penalize Charlo too harshly after he came up short on a difficult assignment, we felt his inability to make the fight competitive merited a slight demotion.

Charlo swaps places with unbeaten Gervonta Davis, who was No. 8 going into the weekend.

Next pound-for-pounder up: Tyson Fury is scheduled to face MMA star Francis Ngannou in a boxing match on Oct. 28 in Saudi Arabia.

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

BOXING JUNKIE
POUND-FOR-POUND

  1. Terence Crawford – No fight scheduled.
  2. Naoya Inoue – No fight scheduled.
  3. Oleksandr Usyk – No fight scheduled.
  4. Dmitry Bivol – No fight scheduled.
  5. Tyson Fury – Scheduled to face MMA star Francis Ngannou in a boxing match on Oct. 28 in Saudi Arabia.
  6. Juan Francisco Estrada – Reportedly in talks with Honorable Mention Kazuto Ioka for a title-unification New Year’s Eve bout in Japan.
  7. Canelo Alvarez– No fight scheduled.
  8. Jermell Charlo – No fight scheduled.
  9. Gervonta Davis – No fight scheduled.
  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 Smit 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 (no fight scheduled); Jermall Charlo (no fight scheduled); Sunny Edwards (scheduled to face Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez in a 112-pound title-unification bout on Dec. 16); 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).

[lawrence-related id=39237,39233,39227,39198,39194]