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By Lyle Fitzsimmons, Sports Network - The Sports Network
Establishment prevailed with the top eight slots in the latest installment of The Sports Network’s Top 10 pound-for-pound boxing rankings, released Thursday.
Incumbent WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao, who will defend his title against Shane Mosley on May 7 in Las Vegas, remains No. 1 overall largely on the strength of November’s unanimous decision victory over Antonio Margarito at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
That fight earned Pacquiao the WBC super welterweight title and ran his unbeaten streak to 13 fights since a call loss to Erik Morales in 2005. Pacquiao subsequently vacated the 154-pound championship and announced his intention to stay at 147 pounds.
Placing second towards the Filipino is unbeaten Floyd Mayweather Jr., who was the last fighter other than Pacquiao to occupy the top end spot. Mayweather beat Mosley by a wide 12-round verdict in the May 2010 match, but may be inactive since, due no less than in part to a number of legal concerns.
A fight between Pacquiao and Mayweather continues to be discussed for the last few years, but was initially scuttled due to Mayweather’s demands for stringent pre-fight drug testing. Subsequent gestures through the Pacquiao camp, however, have reportedly gone unanswered, leaving the fight’s fate uncertain.
IBF/IBO/WBO heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko remains at No. 3 in spite of a recent injury that shelved a planned defense against unbeaten Dereck Chisora. Reportedly, Klitschko is close to a unification bout this summer with WBA champion David Haye.
Consensus middleweight kingpin Sergio Martinez is No. 4 and can attempt to keep that status Saturday night, when he’ll meet rising 154-pounder Sergiy Dzinziruk.
Staying at No. 5 is WBC heavyweight title-holder Vitali Klitschko, who’s 6-0 since getting back from a four-year retirement.
Holding spots 6, 7 and 8 are WBA/WBO lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez, WBA super middleweight champion Andre Ward and IBF super middleweight champion Lucien Bute, respectively.
Up one spot from 10 to 9 is WBO featherweight champion Juan Manuel Lopez, who improved to 30-0 and scored knockout No. 27 with an eighth-round stoppage of veteran Rafael Marquez in November.
Lopez will defend against former IBF champion Orlando Salido on April 16 in Puerto Rico.
The lone Top 10 newcomer - occupying spot No. 10 - is Filipino bantamweight Nonito Donaire, who won the WBC/WBO titles having a smashing two-round KO of Fernando Montiel on Feb. 19 in Las Vegas.
Unbeaten since his second pro fight in 2001, Donaire previously held the IBF/IBO titles at 112 pounds from 2007-09. He will reportedly meet WBA champion Anselmo Moreno inside a bantamweight unification bout on May 28 in Atlantic City.
By Lyle Fitzsimmons, Sports Network - The Sports Network
Establishment prevailed with the top eight slots in the latest installment of The Sports Network’s Top 10 pound-for-pound boxing rankings, released Thursday.
Incumbent WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao, who will defend his title against Shane Mosley on May 7 in Las Vegas, remains No. 1 overall largely on the strength of November’s unanimous decision victory over Antonio Margarito at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
That fight earned Pacquiao the WBC super welterweight title and ran his unbeaten streak to 13 fights since a call loss to Erik Morales in 2005. Pacquiao subsequently vacated the 154-pound championship and announced his intention to stay at 147 pounds.
Placing second towards the Filipino is unbeaten Floyd Mayweather Jr., who was the last fighter other than Pacquiao to occupy the top end spot. Mayweather beat Mosley by a wide 12-round verdict in the May 2010 match, but may be inactive since, due no less than in part to a number of legal concerns.
A fight between Pacquiao and Mayweather continues to be discussed for the last few years, but was initially scuttled due to Mayweather’s demands for stringent pre-fight drug testing. Subsequent gestures through the Pacquiao camp, however, have reportedly gone unanswered, leaving the fight’s fate uncertain.
IBF/IBO/WBO heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko remains at No. 3 in spite of a recent injury that shelved a planned defense against unbeaten Dereck Chisora. Reportedly, Klitschko is close to a unification bout this summer with WBA champion David Haye.
Consensus middleweight kingpin Sergio Martinez is No. 4 and can attempt to keep that status Saturday night, when he’ll meet rising 154-pounder Sergiy Dzinziruk.
Staying at No. 5 is WBC heavyweight title-holder Vitali Klitschko, who’s 6-0 since getting back from a four-year retirement.
Holding spots 6, 7 and 8 are WBA/WBO lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez, WBA super middleweight champion Andre Ward and IBF super middleweight champion Lucien Bute, respectively.
Up one spot from 10 to 9 is WBO featherweight champion Juan Manuel Lopez, who improved to 30-0 and scored knockout No. 27 with an eighth-round stoppage of veteran Rafael Marquez in November.
Lopez will defend against former IBF champion Orlando Salido on April 16 in Puerto Rico.
The lone Top 10 newcomer - occupying spot No. 10 - is Filipino bantamweight Nonito Donaire, who won the WBC/WBO titles having a smashing two-round KO of Fernando Montiel on Feb. 19 in Las Vegas.
Unbeaten since his second pro fight in 2001, Donaire previously held the IBF/IBO titles at 112 pounds from 2007-09. He will reportedly meet WBA champion Anselmo Moreno inside a bantamweight unification bout on May 28 in Atlantic City.