Eaton Thatcher
The Ring Magazine’s pound-for-pound rankings are ready for a shake up. The two top-ranked fighters, Andre Ward (no. 1) and Sergey Kovalev (no. 2), are scheduled for a rematch in June, while Gennady Golovkin (no. 3) vs. Canelo Alvarez was just announced for September.
That’s two big fights which could determine the top spot. Who will end 2017 as the pound-for-pound king? The odds are below. Here’s how things stand at the moment:
- Andre Ward
- Sergey Kovalev
- Gennady Golovkin
- Román González
- Terence Crawford
- Vasyl Lomachenko
- Guillermo Rigondeaux
- Saúl Álvarez
- Shinsuke Yamanaka
- Naoya Inoue
Odds to End 2017 as The Ring’s Top Pound-for-Pound Fighter
Andre Ward (31-0): 18/17
The current no. 1 will have to prove himself once again when he takes on Sergey Kovalev in a bitter rematch in June. If he wins again, it’s very likely he’ll end the year on top. If he loses, Kovalev will be the new pound-for-pound king.
Ward is currently the slight favorite for the rematch, so it makes sense for him to be the favorite to end 2017 as The Ring’s number 1 pound-for-pound.
Gennady Golovkin (37-0): 18/7
Golovkin has finally landed the fight he’s been looking for. He faces Canelo Alvarez in September, and a win could send him to the top of The Ring’s rankings. Canelo is by far his toughest opponent to date, and the 35-year-old power puncher has shown signs of slowing down; Kell Brook largely outboxed him last September and could have scored the win if he’d had more power. But GGG was able to use his own fearsome strength to score a stoppage and is still undefeated. His fight-stopping power is firmly intact.
Sergey Kovalev (30-1-1): 37/3
Kovalev suffered his first professional loss last year to Andre Ward, and it was a controversial decision to say the least. He has a shot to reclaim the light heavyweight division, and in doing so, could also become The Ring’s pound-for-pound king.
Canelo Álvarez (49-1-1): 10/1
Alvarez started the year with an easy win against Julio César Chávez Jr., but the real test will come in September when he faces Gennady Golovkin. While Canelo is currently boxing’s pay-per-view king, he’s got some ground to make up on the pound-for-pound rankings, currently sitting outside the top ten. Two big wins in 2017 would make a strong case for a top-three spot at least.
Vasyl Lomachenko (8-1): 19/1
Vasyl Lomachenko may only be nine fights into his professional career, but he’s already established himself as one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the sport. He’s had difficulty attracting big-name opponents and, until that changes, he’ll have trouble breaking the pound-for-pound top five unless one of the current residents falls off.
Photo credit: Fort George G. Meade Public Affairs Office [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)]
