Thoughts on the Weekend in Boxing and the Latest Pound-for-Pound Rankings

A few thoughts after a busy boxing weekend:

Jake Paul picked up the most legitimate win of his boxing career, decisioning ex-MMA star Anderson Silva, a fight where Paul knocked Silva down in the eighth round. Paul will probably never beat a legitimately ranked boxer, but he doesn’t have to. Paul will enter 2023 with plenty of lucrative options, including Nate Diaz, Tommy Fury and fellow YouTuber-turned-boxer KSI. If Paul fights all three, he will make more money than any boxers will next year.

Paul improved to 6-0 in Saturday’s bout against Silva.

Patrick Breen/The Republic-USA TODAY NETWORK

Vasyl Lomachenko didn’t look great Saturday in a win over Jamaine Ortiz. Lomachenko, fighting for the first time in 10 months, struggled with the athletic and jab-happy Ortiz early, needing a late surge to outpoint Ortiz at the end. With Lomachenko, 34, headed toward a showdown with Devin Haney next year, it’s fair to wonder if age is starting to catch up with the former pound-for-pound king.

William Zepeda is a budding star. Zepeda, the undefeated lightweight, picked up his most impressive win last weekend, scoring a lopsided decision over Joseph Diaz Jr. Against Diaz, Zepeda set CompuBox records at lightweight for punches thrown (1,536), jabs attempted (787) and jabs attempted in a round (89, in the second). He averaged 128 punches per round and outlanded Diaz 398-176. Zepeda is an offensive machine and will be a problem for anyone in the 135-pound division.

Diaz needs to find his way back to 130 pounds. At 29, Diaz can bounce back, but after back-to-back losses to Haney and Zepeda, it’s clear that Diaz doesn’t have the size or power to compete at lightweight. At 130, where Diaz won a title in 2020, he can still be a factor—if he is disciplined enough to get back down there.

It won’t get much attention, but Max Ornelas, an undefeated super bantamweight prospect, got absolutely hosed by the judges in his fight against Hector Valdez. In the opening bout of the telecast of the Diaz-Zepeda show, Ornelas was sharp, controlling the ring with his movement, landing crisp combinations against Valdez, who appeared frustrated for most of the fight. One judge, George Cruz, scored the fight 97-93 for Ornelas, a reasonable reflection of how the fight went. Two others, Raul Caiz Sr. and Alejandro Rochin, scored it 97-93 for Valdez, scorecards that were, in a word, inexplicable.

It’s disgraceful. Ornelas, 24, trained for this fight for months. When the opportunity to fight Valdez came up, Ornelas pushed for it. Hard. He told his team he wanted to show Golden Boy that he was the real prospect. He wanted to be signed by Golden Boy, to get a major promoter behind him as he made his way in the 122-pound division. He did everything right. And two judges robbed him of his moment, showing levels of ineptitude far too common in boxing. Here’s hoping Golden Boy gives him a rematch with Valdez, or at least brings him back in another fight. He earned it.

On to Sports Illustrated’s latest men’s pound-for-pound rankings.

1. Terence Crawford

Record: 38-0

Last month’s ranking: 1

Last fight: TKO win vs. Shawn Porter

Next fight: vs. David Avanesyan on Dec. 10

A Crawford-Errol Spence fight is dead. Again. Crawford, 35 ended the latest round of negotiations by agreeing to a deal to face Avanesyan, a fringe 147-pound contender. It’s part of a one-fight deal Crawford signed with BLK Prime, a pay-per-view subscription service that is reportedly paying Crawford at least $10 million for the fight. While it’s hard to fault Crawford for accepting such a lucrative payday, it’s possible, perhaps likely, that his decision ended any chance of ever seeing Crawford and Spence share the ring.

2. Oleksandr Usyk

Record: 20-0

Last month’s ranking: 2

Last fight: SD win vs. Anthony Joshua

Next fight: TBD

Only Canelo Alvarez can claim a better resume than Usyk, whose accomplishments include wins over Marco Huck, Mairis Briedis and Tony Bellew at cruiserweight and now a pair of wins over Anthony Joshua at heavyweight. Usyk has settled nicely into boxing’s glamour division, finding a comfortable weight (around 221 pounds) and fighting style that has made him tough to beat. Usyk plans to take the rest of 2022 off before gearing up for another heavyweight challenge: Tyson Fury, the WBC titleholder who, if he gets past Derek Chisora in December, will likely face Usyk in the first half of 2022.

3. Saul “Canelo” Alvarez

Record: 58-2-2

Last month’s ranking: 3

Last fight: UD win vs. Gennadiy Golovkin

Next fight: TBD

The third fight between Alvarez and Gennadiy Golovkin in September didn’t match the intensity of the first two but it did establish the first clear winner in one of boxing’s better rivalries and it did put Alvarez, 32, back in the win column after last May’s upset loss to Dmitry Bivol. Alvarez said he intends to have surgery on an injured left wrist, putting a return off until next May, at the earliest. When he does he says he will target a rematch with Bivol, should Bivol defeat Alvarez’s countryman, Gilberto Ramirez, in November.

4. Naoya Inoue

Record: 23-0

Last month’s ranking: 4

Last Fight: KO win vs. Nonito Donaire

Next Fight: vs. Paul Butler on Dec. 13

Inoue cemented his status as the top 118-pound fighter in boxing with a sensational second-round knockout of Nonito Donaire in June. In stopping Donaire, Inoue, 29, added a third bantamweight title to his collection. He will get a shot at the fourth—and a chance to be called an undisputed champion—in December, when he takes on Butler in Japan.

5. Errol Spence Jr.

Record: 28-0

Last month’s ranking: 5

Last Fight: TKO win vs. Yordenis Ugas

Next Fight: TBD

Spence, 32, continued his assault on the top names in the welterweight division last April, stopping Yordenis Ugas to pick up a third piece of the 147-pound title. Despite a series of career-threatening injuries—a car crash in 2019, an eye injury that forced him out of a scheduled fight with Manny Pacquiao in 2021—Spence continues to roll through the best fighters in his weight class. With a Crawford fight gone, Spence has hinted at moving up in weight, where he can attempt to become a two-division world champion.

6. Tyson Fury

Record: 31-0-1

Last month’s ranking: 6

Last Fight: KO win vs. Dillian Whyte

Next Fight: vs. Derek Chisora on Dec. 3

April’s knockout win over Dillian Whyte burnished Fury’s credentials as the best heavyweight in boxing. Rarely do fighters in this weight class appear on pound-for-pound lists, but Fury, 34, blends impressive boxing skills with a strong resume. Early career wins over Chisora and Wladimir Klitschko have been eclipsed by back-to-back knockouts of Deontay Wilder and, most recently, Whyte, who was floored by a savage uppercut in front of north of 90,000 fans at Wembley Stadium. Fury will clash again with Chisora in December, a stay busy fight before Fury pursues a unification fight with Oleksandr Usyk next year.

7. Shakur Stevenson

Record: 18-0

Last month’s ranking: 7

Last Fight: UD win vs. Robson Conceicao

Next Fight: TBD

Stevenson, 25, looked brilliant in a lopsided decision win over the once-beaten Conceicao, walking the ex-Olympic gold medalist down while continuing to be among boxing’s most difficult fighters to hit. Stevenson now heads to 135-pounds where star making matchups with Devin Haney, Vasyl Lomachenko and Gervonta Davis await.

8. Jermell Charlo

Record: 35-1-1

Last month’s ranking: 8

Last Fight: KO win vs. Brian Castano

Next Fight: TBD

Charlo earned a place on this list after picking up a spectacular knockout win over Brian Castano in May, avenging last year’s controversial draw and fully unifying the 154-pound division. Charlo’s resume at junior middleweight is impressive: He has wins over Erickson Lubin, Austin Trout, Tony Harrison and Jeison Rosario, with his only loss a questionable decision defeat to Harrison. Charlo has consistently taken on the best in the division, which will continue in his next fight, with Charlo penciled in for a title defense against Tim Tszyu, the heavy handed Australian who is the mandatory challenger for one of Charlo’s belts.

9. Dmitry Bivol

Record: 20-0

Last month’s ranking: 10

Last Fight: UD win vs. Saul Alvarez

Next Fight: vs. Gilberto Ramirez on Nov. 5

Bivol, 31, established himself as one of boxing’s elite with a convincing decision win over Alvarez last May. With Alvarez passing on an immediate rematch, Bivol will defend his title against unbeaten former super middleweight champion Gilberto Ramirez in November. A win would springboard Bivol into either a massive showdown with Alvarez or a title unification fight against Artur Beterbiev, a fight that would establish an undisputed champion at 175-pounds.

10. Devin Haney

Record: 29-0

Last month’s ranking: NR

Last Fight: UD win vs. George Kambosos

Next Fight: TBD

Haney, 23, joins the rankings after a second straight decisive win over former titleholder George Kambosos. Traveling to Australia for the second straight fight, Haney, operating behind a smooth jab and stinging right hands, dominated Kambosos. The win caps a solid two-year run for Haney that includes wins over Jorge Linares, Joseph Diaz Jr. and Kambosos. Haney should get a chance to burnish his credentials next year: Top Rank intends to match Haney with Kambosos in a monster showdown in the lightweight division.

More Boxing Coverage:

3 May 24 Jimm Sallivan

Long-Simmering Feud Between Canelo Alvarez and Oscar De La Hoya Finally Boils Over

LAS VEGAS – In 2010, Oscar De La Hoya, then a 30-something ex-fighter early in his new career as a full-time promoter, stood in a ballroom at the MGM Grand and declared a then 19-year old Saúl “Canelo” Álvarez to be the future of boxing.

On Wednesday, some fourteen years later, De La Hoya and Álvarez stood in the same room on the same dais, only this time it was De La Hoya addressing stinging remarks at Álvarez and Canelo leaping out of his seat to confront him.

Officially, Wednesday’s press conference was to promote Álvarez’s super middleweight title defense against Jaime Munguía. What it turned into was Álvarez and De La Hoya ripping the band-aids off old wounds. The relationship between the two has been frosty since Álvarez split from De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions in 2020, with the two regularly sniping at each other through the press. Sharing a stage for the first time in five years, the tension quickly boiled over.

Addressing reporters, De La Hoya, Munguía’s co-promoter, quickly took aim at Álvarez. He questioned why Álvarez had spent so much time focused on him. He noted that Munguía was ready to face Gennadiy Golovkin in 2018, when Álvarez was pulled from the fight following two failed drug tests. He reminded Álvarez, who developed into boxing’s most bankable star in ten years with De La Hoya, that Golden Boy “built” him. That company, De La Hoya said, has always had one name.

“It’s mine,” De La Hoya said, “so put some f---ing respect on it.”

Álvarez, predictably, reacted angrily. He called De La Hoya an “imbecile.” He reminded De La Hoya that he was a star before he started working for Golden Boy. He accused De La Hoya of stealing from fighters, including Golovkin, Álvarez’s longtime rival, and those still working with him should “lawyer up.” Later, when a PBC interpreter sanitized the translation, Álvarez grabbed a mic and addressed the room in English.

“He tried to steal money, and he’s a f---ing ass----,” Álvarez said. “That’s what I said. He’s a f---ing ass----. He tried to [bring] attention to him, not for Munguía. He’s a f---ing ass----. He steals from his fighter. That’s what he [does]. F---ing p---y mother------.”

Oscar De La Hoya and Canelo Alvarez have heated words for each other and have to be separated at the #CaneloMunguia press conference. pic.twitter.com/QKGApkXOYS
— Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) May 1, 2024

On Thursday, De La Hoya’s attorney’s sent Álvarez a cease-and-desist letter, demanding that Canelo “retract his defamatory allegations that Oscar stole from boxers.” Álvarez’s lawyer, Greg Smith, responded by telling ESPN that Canelo “said what he said.”

Indeed, a simmering feud between two of boxing’s biggest names has become a full on war. In 2010, Golden Boy celebrated Álvarez’s signing. It was called “a historic day” in a press release. De La Hoya declared Álvarez to be a “star.” Álvarez said the chance to work with Golden Boy “was too good to pass up.”

In 2014, the bond between De La Hoya and Álvarez seemed stronger than ever. During a power struggle inside Golden Boy—a civil war that saw longtime CEO Richard Schaefer exit and many of the company's top stars, who were represented managerially by Al Haymon, leave with him—Álvarez sided with De La Hoya. That decision, a longtime Golden Boy employee told Sports Illustrated “saved the company.” With Álvarez on board, Golden Boy was able to maintain its relationship with HBO and rebuild its stable.

In 2019, the relationship went south. Álvarez grew weary of De La Hoya’s public struggles with drugs and alcohol. A committed fighter—Álvarez’s signature slogan is “no boxing, no life”—Álvarez questioned De La Hoya’s commitment to his own work. “A betrayal,” is how a source close to Álvarez framed his feelings this week. When Álvarez found a way out of his contract in 2020, he never looked back.

Oscar De La Hoya and Jaime Munguía at a press conference — De La Hoya (right) previously represented Álvarez and is now the co-promoter for Munguía (left), who faces Álvarez on Saturday.

Patrick Breen/The Republic / USA TODAY

On Wednesday, De La Hoya copped to his failings. He said he had been to rehab. “Several times,” De La Hoya said. He agreed that he had failed as a promoter “when work was not my priority based on my mental health, which I had neglected for so long.” But he reminded Álvarez of the success he achieved with Golden Boy, both in the ring, where Álvarez became a three-division world champion, and out of it. In 2018, Golden Boy negotiated a historic 11-fight, $365 million deal with DAZN.

Said De La Hoya, “He seems to have trouble remembering who helped him become a true global star.”

De La Hoya has other motives for antagonizing Álvarez. Munguía (43–0) is a heavy underdog against Álvarez (60–2–2). Munguía, 27, is young, aggressive and heavy handed but doesn’t have a fraction of the experience of Álvarez, 33, whose resume includes Golovkin, Floyd Mayweather and Dmitry Bivol. Getting under Álvarez’s skin, says De La Hoya, was part of the plan.

“Hopefully,” said De La Hoya, “it worked.”

Perhaps. Canelo–Munguía will be a firefight. Munguía has evolved into a dangerous offensive fighter in recent fights. He defeated former title challenger Sergiy Derevyanchenko last year—a fight hailed by many outlets as the Fight of the Year—and last January knocked out the durable John Ryder. Against Ryder, Munguía’s first fight with Hall of Fame trainer Freddie Roach, Munguía flashed some defensive skills.

But Canelo is not Derevyanchenko. He’s not Ryder. He may not be the pound-for-pound No. 1 who stormed through three divisions between 2018 and 2021 but he’s still quick, heavy handed with an elite ring IQ. De La Hoya believes Álvarez’s best days are behind him. On Saturday, Munguía will be the one who finds out.

“He’s walking in quicksand now,” De La Hoya said of Álvarez. “His injuries are catching up to him. He’s an old 33. You can be old depending on your wars. I think the stars are aligned for Jaime Munguía to take advantage of this situation Saturday.”

US Sports News

Thoughts on the Weekend in Boxing and the Latest Pound-for-Pound Rankings

1. Terence Crawford

2. Oleksandr Usyk

3. Saul “Canelo” Alvarez

4. Naoya Inoue

5. Errol Spence Jr.

6. Tyson Fury

7. Shakur Stevenson

8. Jermell Charlo

9. Dmitry Bivol

10. Devin Haney

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Jimm Sallivan