BoxRec

Here we go. This is based on Ring ratings, which should not be biased towards any one body. Although many do not agree with the Ring ratings, I hope that overall we can come to an total score that should represent what we are trying to achieve. 'Regular' champions will be ignored in favour of 'Super' champions, even though an argument can be made for such bizarre treatment to make the title even less prestigious, although I think it's just the WBA whom do this.

5 points for Champion
4 points for 2nd in division
3 points for 3rd in division
2 points for 4th in division
1 point for 5th in division
0 points anything below that

I always thought myself that the hierarchy was 1. WBC, 2. IBF, 3. WBA & 4. WBO, although nowadays I think they mean a lot less than they used to. Let's see if this holds true. This has taken me an hour to put together, let me know if there are any errors!

Heavyweight

Wladimir Klitschko - IBF, WBO (5 pts each)
Vitali Klitschko - WBC (4 pts)
David Haye - WBA (3pts)

Cruiserweight

Steve Cunningham - IBF (4 pts)
Marco Huck - WBO (3 pts)
Krzysztof Wlodarczyk - WBC (2 pts)
Guillermo Jones - WBA (0 pts)

Light Heavyweight

Jean Pascal - WBC (5 pts)
Tavoris Cloud - IBF (3 pts)
Beibut Shumenov - WBA (0 pts)
Juergen Braehmer - WBO (0 pts)

Super Middleweight

Andre Ward - WBA (4 pts)
Lucian Bute - IBF (3 pts)
Carl Froch - WBC (2 pts)
Robert Stieglitz - WBO (0 pts)

Middleweight

Sergio Martinez - WBC (5 pts)
Felix Sturm - WBA (4 pts)
Sebastian Sylvester - IBF (3 pts)
Dmitry Pirog - WBO (0 pts)

Jr. Middleweight

Miguel Cotto - WBA (2 pts)
Saúl Álvarez - WBC (0 pts)
Cornelius Bundrage - IBF (0 pts)
Sergiy Dzinziruk - WBO (0 pts)

Welterweight

Manny Pacquiao - WBO (4 pts)
Andre Berto - WBC (2 pts)
Dejan Zavec - IBF (0 pts)
Vyacheslav Senchenko - WBA (0 pts)

Jr. Welterweight

Timothy Bradley - WBC, WBO (4 pts each)
Amir Khan - WBA (3 pts)
Zab Judah - IBF (0 pts)

Lightweight

Juan Manuel Marquez - WBA, WBO (5 pts)
Humberto Soto - WBC (3 pts)
Miguel Vazquez - IBF (0 pts)

Jr. Lightweight

Mzonke Fana - IBF (4 pts)
Ricky Burns - WBO (3 pts)
Takashi Uchiyama - WBA (2 pts)
Takahiro Ao - WBC (0 pts)

Featherweight

Juan Manuel Lopez - WBO (4 pts)
Yuriorkis Gamboa - WBA, IBF (3 pts each)
Hozumi Hasegawa - WBC (0 pts)

Bantamweight

Nonito Donaire - WBC, WBO (4 pts each)
Anselmo Moreno - WBA (3 pts)
Joseph Agbeko - IBF (2 pts)

Jr. Bantamweight

Hugo Cazares - WBA (4 pts)
Tomas Rojas - WBC (3 pts)
Omar Narvaez - WBO (0 pts)
Simphiwe Nongqayi - IBF (0 pts)

Flyweight

Pongsaklek Wonjongkam - WBC (5 pts)
Luis Concepcion - WBA (3 pts)
Moruti Mthalane - IBF (0 pts)
Julio Cesar Miranda - WBO (0 pts)

Jr. Flyweight

Giovani Segura - WBO (5 pts)
Gilberto Keb Baas - WBC (3 pts)
Luis Alberto Lazarte - IBF (0 pts)
Juan Carlos Reveco - WBA (0 pts)

Strawweight

Nkosinathi Joyi - IBF (4 pts)
Kazuto Ioka - WBC (3 pts)
Donnie Nietes - WBO - (0 pts)
Kwanthai Sithmorseng - WBA (0 pts)

Overall Table:

WBC (45 pts)
WBO (37 pts)
WBA (36 pts)
IBF (31 pts)

So there you have it, it seems the WBC is still the title with the highest rated champions, and by a clear margin. The WBO appears to have cemented its place firmly within the top four and no longer appears to be "the fourth best belt", leaving the IBF with a bit of catching up to do.

Interesting list. Thanks for sharing, John. I tend not to think too much about the belts any more.

Rankings though a bit subjective. You have Froch above Kessler as an example. Pascal ranked as #1 also.

Who is your number #1 Super Middle - cause I see nobody with 5 pts. Its a little unclear (sorry to say).

x2

over the eyars they have become very muched devalued with all the politics and hand picked matches

Fans know who the best fighters in divisons.
The Fighters make the belt IMO

Asterix wrote:Interesting list. Thanks for sharing, John. I tend not to think too much about the belts any more.

stujones wrote:Rankings though a bit subjective. You have Froch above Kessler as an example. Pascal ranked as #1 also.

Who is your number #1 Super Middle - cause I see nobody with 5 pts. Its a little unclear (sorry to say).

I was assuming he'd be using the Boxrec ratings, but you're right, no number 1 for super middleweight (or cruiserweight).

Asterix wrote:

stujones wrote:Rankings though a bit subjective. You have Froch above Kessler as an example. Pascal ranked as #1 also.

Who is your number #1 Super Middle - cause I see nobody with 5 pts. Its a little unclear (sorry to say).

I was assuming he'd be using the Boxrec ratings, but you're right, no number 1 for super middleweight (or cruiserweight).

1st line, 2nd sentence....

"Here we go. This is based on Ring ratings"

earsjohn wrote:

Asterix wrote:

stujones wrote:Rankings though a bit subjective. You have Froch above Kessler as an example. Pascal ranked as #1 also.

Who is your number #1 Super Middle - cause I see nobody with 5 pts. Its a little unclear (sorry to say).

I was assuming he'd be using the Boxrec ratings, but you're right, no number 1 for super middleweight (or cruiserweight).

1st line, 2nd sentence....

"Here we go. This is based on Ring ratings"

stujones wrote:Rankings though a bit subjective. You have Froch above Kessler as an example. Pascal ranked as #1 also.

Who is your number #1 Super Middle - cause I see nobody with 5 pts. Its a little unclear (sorry to say).

Yes, Ring ratings - they are not my ratings! Of course the ratings are subjective, but as the Ring ratings are not loyal to any particular body, I have used them for this in order to get a feel for the worth of the various world titles out there. It could also be done with Boxrec ratings (if people feel they are more meaningful than the Ring ratings - I don't). Based on this data, the weakest division is Light Middleweight by far as Cotto is the only title holder with a top five rating. Heavyweight is arguably the toughest division to hold a title in as all four of the titles are held by the top three ranked fighters.

Comparing the standard of the WBC, WBA and IBF is like trying to rank the smell of dog sh1t, cat sh1t and cow sh1t. When all's said and done they're all sh1t...

Matt W wrote:Comparing the standard of the WBC, WBA and IBF is like trying to rank the smell of dog sh1t, cat sh1t and cow sh1t. When all's said and done they're all sh1t...

If the WBC is the smell of dog sh!t, then Jose Sulaiman is the St. Bernard who had a bad curry