New Champs at 130, 118, 105: BoxingScene Ratings Update
by Cliff Rold
Light Heavyweight: Joe Smith’s upset of Andrzej Fonfara sees him crash the top ten and send Fonfara plummeting. Fonfara remains rated, if barely, forcing Artur Beterbiev from the rankings. Beterbiev will almost certainly be back.
Middleweight: Barring a declaration that he is staying permanently at 154 lbs. after his next fight, Saul Alvarez remains listed as the lineal middleweight champion. The designation is a historical marker, not a qualitative one.
Jr. Middleweight: Demetrius Andrade removes Willie Nelson from the top ten with one of his best career outings. Charles Hatley debuts in the top ten.
Jr. Welterweight: John Molina had one of the finest nights of his fistic career, moving into the top ten over a strong win over Ruslan Provodnikov. Provodnikov falls but remains rated, pushing Sergey Lipinets out of the top ten.
Jr. Lightweight: Lots of heavy activity in this class this year. Jason Sosa and Vasyl Lomachenko scored big knockout wins to make their presence felt while Francisco Vargas and Orlando Salido put on the best fight of the year to date. Salido gets a bump and Lomachenko rises almost to the top. Edner Cherry and Javier Foruna exit the top ten to make room for the new arrivals.
Featherweight: Lomachenko exits with his move to 130. Joseph Diaz enters the top ten.
Bantamweight: Rau’shee Warren moves up on the strength of his win over Juan Carlos Payano. Zolani Tete moves into the top ten, bumping out Marlon Tapales.
Jr. Bantamweight: Omar Narvaez exits to campaign at 118 lbs. Zolani Tete has also moved up, as noted. Juan Hernandez and Sho Ishida enter the top ten.
Jr. Flyweight: Jonathan Taconing slips in the ratings after a failed title try against Ganigan Lopez.
Strawweight: Knockout CP Freshmart is now the full WBA titlist and gets a bump in the ratings after an ugly decision win over Byron Rojas.
The full results of note and the total impact on the ratings are a click away.
Last ratings update: May 31, 2016
Cliff Rold is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene, a founding member of the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board, and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be reached at roldboxing@hotmail.com
