The WBC’s latest ratings update – released October 18 – includes the installation of five new No. 1 contenders.
At light heavyweight: Dmitry Bivol, 23-1 (12 KOs), is at No. 1 after losing earlier this month to Artur Beterbiev, 21-0 (20 KOs), in a fight for the undisputed championship.
As Bivol no longer has his WBA belt, the WBC is willing to rank him again. The previous No. 1 was Oleksandr Gvozdyk, 20-2 (16 KOs), who moves down to No. 2.
The WBC’s interim titleholder is David Benavidez, 29-0 (24 KOs). Benavidez would typically be next in line for the fight. However, Benavidez is expected to face David Morrell, 11-0 (9 KOs), in early 2025.
At featherweight: Bruce Carrington, 13-0 (8 KOs), replaced Robeisy Ramirez, 14-2 (9 KOs), as the No. 1 contender.
Carrington was previously ranked No. 2 and didn’t look great in his September majority decision victory over Sulaiman Segawa, 17-5-1 (6 KOs). However, Ramirez was pulled from the WBC’s ratings as he will have a rematch with WBO titleholder Rafael Espinoza, 25-0 (21 KOs), on December 7.
The new WBC featherweight titleholder is Brandon Figueroa, 25-1-1 (19 KOs), who was upgraded from interim titleholder when an injured Rey Vargas, 36-1-1 (22 KOs), was downgraded to “champion-in-recess.” Figueroa will have a rematch with Stephen Fulton, 22-1 (8 KOs), on December 14.
At bantamweight: Juan Francisco Estrada, 44-4 (28 KOs), replaced Petch Sor Chitpattana, 76-2 (53 KOs), as the No. 1 contender. Sor Chitpattana just lost to WBC titleholder Junto Nakatani (29-0, 22 KOs). Sor Chitpattana was dropped to No. 8 on the list. Estrada was previously ranked No. 2 down in the 115lbs weight class following his knockout loss there to Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez, 20-0 (13 KOs)
At flyweight: Francisco Rodriguez Jnr, 39-6-1 (27 KOs), filled the No. 1 slot, which was left vacant when previous No. 1 Kenshiro Teraj, 24-1 (15 KOs), defeated previous No. 2 Cristofer Rosales, 37-7 (22 KOs), for the vacant WBC title.
And at minimumweight: Yudai Shigeoka, 9-1 (5 KOs), replaced Luis Castillo, 21-1-1 (13 KOs) as the No. 1 contender. Shigeoka had been No. 2, but he was moved up when Castillo lost last month to WBC titleholder Melvin Jerusalem, 23-3 (12 KOs).
The WBC’s titleholders and No. 1 contenders in each weight class are:
Heavyweight: Oleksandr Usyk has the world title; Tyson Fury is his No. 1 contender. Their rematch is scheduled for December 21.
Bridgerweight: Kevin Lerena has the world title; Adam Balski is his No. 1 contender.
Cruiserweight: Noel Mikaelyan has the world title; Ryan Rozicki is his No. 1 contender; Badou Jack is the champion-in-recess. Mikaelyan and Rozicki are scheduled to fight on December 7.
Light heavyweight: Artur Beterbiev has the world title; David Benavidez is the interim titleholder; Dmitry Bivol is the No. 1 contender.
Super middleweight: Saul “Canelo” Alvarez has the world title; Christian Mbilli is his No. 1 contender.
Middleweight: Carlos Adames has the world title; Hamzah Sheeraz is his No. 1 contender.
Junior middleweight: Sebastian Fundora has the world title; Vergil Ortiz is the interim titleholder; Errol Spence is the No. 1 contender.
Welterweight: Mario Barrios has the world title; Souleymane Cissokho is his No. 1 contender; Terence Crawford is the champion-in-recess.
Junior welterweight: Alberto Puello has the world title; Sandor Martin is his No. 1 contender; Devin Haney is the champion-in-recess. Puello and Martin are expected to fight on the December 14 undercard of Gervonta Davis vs. Lamont Roach Jnr.
Lightweight: Shakur Stevenson has the world title; William Zepeda is his No. 1 contender.
Junior lightweight: Robson Conceicao has the world title; O’Shaquie Foster is his No. 1 contender. They are scheduled for their rematch on November 2.
Featherweight: Brandon Figueroa has the world title; Bruce Carrington is his No. 1 contender; Rey Vargas is the champion-in-recess.
Junior featherweight: Naoya Inoue has the world title; Alan David Picasso is his No. 1 contender.
Bantamweight: Junto Nakatani has the world title; Juan Francisco Estrada is his No. 1 contender.
Junior bantamweight: Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez has the world title; Pedro Guevara is the interim titleholder; Roman Gonzalez is the #1 contender. Rodriguez vs. Guevara is scheduled for November 9.
Flyweight: Kenshiro Teraji has the world title; Francisco Rodriguez Jnr is his No. 1 contender.
Junior flyweight: The world title is vacant; Carlos Canizales is the No. 1 contender.
Minimumweight: Melvin Jerusalem has the world title; Yudai Shigeoka is his No. 1 contender.
David Greisman, who has covered boxing since 2004, is on Twitter @FightingWords2 and @UnitedBoxingPod. He is the co-host of the United Boxing Podcast. David’s book, “Fighting Words: The Heart and Heartbreak of Boxing,” is available on Amazon.
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