Boxing’s pound-for-pound list is already a mythical, mercurial concept given to contention and conflict. We can’t even agree which fighters belong on P4P lists now. How in the world are we to project who might land there in 2028? Or in 2031? Or even 2035?
We’re just going to take our best shot at it.
From dominant power punchers to masterful boxers and everything in between, here is a list of 10 up-and-comers who could challenge for the title of best boxer in the world regardless of weight class.
10. Keyshawn Davis
Record: 13-0 (9 KOs)
With Davis, the talent is obvious. He is doing things we don’t often see. He was moved quickly as a pro, won a world title and faced hard opposition early, like Nahir Albright. That said, Davis’ biggest enemy will be himself. He has fought only once this year, in February, after which his bout against Edwin De Los Santos was cancelled when he missed weight. Davis should be attempting to fill the top spot in the sport, but how much does he want it? Davis has yet to fight after winning the WBO lightweight title, and he has already lost the belt on the scale. Davis is extremely talented – he could be one of boxing’s best for the next decade – but he is also someone without a clear direction, with no word of a return.
9. Osleys Iglesias
Record: 14-0 (13 KOs)
Iglesias has won a super middleweight interim world title and hasn’t had a hard fight. He was an obscure fighter in 2024, and now, at the end of 2025, he is one of the most interesting names trying to make a run to the top of the sport. Iglesias inevitably will hit adversity like all fighters do. Yet he has already faced Vladimir Shishkin, Petro Ivanov and Evgeny Shvedenko, who offered little resistance. Iglesias is a skilled boxer with a nasty check hook that he lands with precision to an opponent’s temple, and he could be special.
8. Brian Norman Jnr-Devin Haney winner
Record: Norman, 28-0 (22 KOs); Haney, 32-0 (15 KOs)
We promise we aren’t trying to get cute here, but it speaks to how good the November 22 fight between Norman and Haney is expected to be. Norman looked average in developmental fights, but since knocking out Giovani Santillan, he has risen to the level of a fearsome power puncher and a top player in the division. Norman’s knockout of Jin Sasaki in June was scary.
Meanwhile, Haney was on the cusp of the top five of the pound-for-pound list before a loss to Ryan Garcia that was later amended to a no-contest. Since then, one tentative performance against Jose Ramirez hasn’t answered many questions about where Haney is in his career and the damage suffered in the Garcia fight.
The winner of Norman-Haney becomes a capital G guy in the welterweight division and will be launched up current P4P lists.
7. Teofimo Lopez Jnr
Record: 22-1 (13 KOs)
Lopez is as talented as any fighter on this list, and his win five years ago over Vasiliy Lomachenko was a major moment. Still, inconsistency has been the story of his career. Lopez looked phenomenal against Richard Commey, Josh Taylor and Lomachenko – but pedestrian against Sandor Martin and Jamaine Ortiz. Lopez is capable of finishing as one of the sport’s best, especially after a big win over Arnold Barboza Jnr in May. But he will need to string together a few good performances, along with a big win or two, to challenge for the top spot over the next few years.
6. Jaron “Boots” Ennis
Record: 35-0 (31 KOs)
Ennis should be higher, but his resume needs some pizazz. He has the talent of a No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter. He passes the eye test. Now we just need to see the career-defining fights, the legacy bouts that will lead to the accolades he deserves. If Ennis doesn’t top the list in the next five years, it would be a true shame since. He is one of the great modern fighters, and is only awaiting his moment to face another star. Logically, that fighter should be Vergil Ortiz Jnr.
5. Vergil Ortiz Jnr
Record: 23-0 (21 KOs)
Ortiz has all the tools to be the next major Mexican-American fighter, and he has faced increasingly interesting opposition, defeating Serhii Bohachuk and Israil Madrimov in his past two fights. He has an exciting style, a ton of power, humility (which actually matters at the highest level) and a deep desire to test himself. Now he has reached the part of his career where he just needs the fights to learn how good he really is. He will face Erickson Lubin on Saturday to continue finding out.
4. David Benavidez
Record: 30-0 (24 KOs)
Benavidez has had the misfortune of being avoided. His win over David Morrell Jnr was impressive – and even more so was his willingness to make a fight with such a dangerous opponent. Benavidez was unable to get big fights at super middleweight, as Saul “Canelo” Alvarez held all the belts and is now waiting for the Dmitry Bivol-Artur Beterbiev trilogy to conclude. Benavidez should occupy the No. 1 spot at some point in his career given his talent and willingness to fight the best, as well as his consistent ability to win. He is one of boxing’s most vicious volume punchers.
3. Dmitry Bivol
Record: 24-1 (12 KOs)
It could be argued that Bivol was already the No. 1 fighter in the world after he beat Saul “Canelo” Alvarez. But he has had the misfortune of fighting in a strong era at the top: Terence Crawford, Oleksandr Usyk and Naoya Inoue all have been in their primes during Bivol’s best work. If he stays active, some of his peers will retire in the next couple of years, and Bivol will have a chance to vault up the rankings to the top spot.
2. Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez
Record: 22-0 (15 KOs)
Rodriguez is a brilliant boxer-puncher who slips punches and rips to the body. A boxing insider once told me that watching him train is like watching poetry in motion. Rodriguez emerged in 2022 to become a household name, defeating a handful of great legends at flyweight and junior bantamweight. Hopefully, he gets to occupy the top spot at some point.
1. Shakur Stevenson
Record: 24-0 (11 KOs)
It’s only a matter of time before Stevenson, a fundamentally sound boxer who has been historically great at every level, gets to the top spot. He is a former US Olympian, turned pro in a six-round bout, won a world title within a couple of years and has made becoming a three-division titleholder look effortless. Stevenson is starting to get the big fights that can move him up on this list, such as defeating William Zepeda in his most recent bout. A few of the old guard will have to falter or retire before he gets his chance to top the list, but it seems inevitable that Stevenson will – probably by 2028 – be the most recognized boxer in the sport.
Honorable mention: Moses Itauma, Richardson Hitchins, O’Shaquie Foster, Abdullah Mason and Andy Cruz.
Lucas Ketelle is the author of “Inside the Ropes of Boxing,” a guide for young fighters, a writer for BoxingScene and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. Find him on X at @BigDogLukie.
