BoxRec

Golovkin Joins Boxing Hall of Fame Ballot

The ballot for the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) Class of 2026 has been released, with former unified middleweight champ Gennadiy Golovkin included.

Golovkin, who dominated the middleweight division for nearly a decade, was a two-time unified champion. He secured wins over the likes of Daniel Jacobs and David Lemieux. While he failed to win a single bout in his trilogy against Canelo Alvarez, most of the boxing community felt he had done enough to get a decision win in their first fight which ended in a draw.

GGG joins two other fighters on the list. The late Vernon Forrest is included, recognized for his titles at welterweight and junior middleweight and for his wins over Shane Mosley. They are accompanied by Steve Collins, who captured WBO championships in the middleweight and super middleweight divisions. The Women’s Modern ballot also welcomes five-division champion Naoko Fujioka. She is joined by two-division champ Christina Hammer and two-weight champion Jackie Nava.

Current List
Gennadiy Golovkin, Men’s Modern category inductee candidate
Vernon Forrest, Men’s Modern category inductee candidate
Steve Collins, Men’s Modern category inductee candidate
Naoko Fujioka, Women’s Modern category inductee candidate
Christina Hammer, Women’s Modern category inductee candidate
Jackie Nava, Women’s Modern category inductee candidate
Willie Davies, Early Era (Old Timer) category inductee candidate
Jimmy Glenn, Non-Participant (Trainer/Cutman) category inductee candidate
Jack Reiss, Non-Participant (Referee) category inductee candidate
Kelly Swanson, Non-Participant (Publicist) category inductee candidate
Steve Weisfeld, Non-Participant (Judge) category inductee candidate
Steve Bunce, Observer (Broadcaster/Journalist) category inductee candidate
Steve Springer, Observer (Journalist) category inductee candidate
Gordon Hall, Observer (TV Producer) category inductee candidate

Of the 2 fighters on that list GGG and Forrest are a no brainer, and outside of them, this is the weakest crop of Hall of Fame candidates I've ever seen.

I would have no problem with Steve Weisfeld or Jack Reiss getting in. Weisfeld was Showtime's Boxing commentator, and I think a Boxing Journalist for many many years before that. Reiss has refereed hundreds of bouts.

If Bunce gets voted in does he have to retire like boxers do ?

Golovkin will be a first ballot hall of fame man, and the leading vote receiver in his class. An honor given to the select few.

christina hammer lmao, the womans hall is a joke. they should have no more than 1 inductee a year now that theyve inducted a lot of the obvious names

GGG
Vernon
Bunce
Reiss

margaret thatcher wrote: ↑02 Oct 2025, 18:20 christina hammer lmao, the womans hall is a joke. they should have no more than 1 inductee a year now that theyve inducted a lot of the obvious names

There have only been like 4 or 5 women that genuinely have Hall of Fame credentials. If they just put a woman in all the time regardless to fill some quota, they'll definitely be the least accomplished members of the Hall of Fame.

Many of them less accomplished than most Pro Males with more than 6 fights.

Lots of good names on that list
Why Bunce ?
Super knowledgeable
Been around the fights in person
Spans decades
Opinionated
Colourful
Controversial
and Interesting
A wealth of knowledge

Evander wrote: ↑03 Oct 2025, 00:28 Lots of good names on that list
Why Bunce ?
Super knowledgeable
Been around the fights in person
Spans decades
Opinionated
Colourful
Controversial
and Interesting
A wealth of knowledge

what an incredible man. how do his balls taste?

margaret thatcher wrote: ↑03 Oct 2025, 01:04

Evander wrote: ↑03 Oct 2025, 00:28 Lots of good names on that list
Why Bunce ?
Super knowledgeable
Been around the fights in person
Spans decades
Opinionated
Colourful
Controversial
and Interesting
A wealth of knowledge

what an incredible man. how do his balls taste?

You're not a fan

Marlon Starling should be on the ballot and should have been inducted by now. I hope they don't ever induct Steve Weisfeld as a judge. I think Jackie Nava ana Naoko Fujioka should get inducted for the women. Golovkin and Forrest should get inducted.

Beating Honeyghan was big for him

Ryan Garcia was on the Inside the Ring show and said GGG didn’t deserve to be first ballot.

Ruthless-RKO wrote: ↑13 Oct 2025, 01:43 Ryan Garcia was on the Inside the Ring show and said GGG didn’t deserve to be first ballot.

What an idiot Garcia is.

I continue think Santos Laciar should be in, but it’s hard for the little guys to even get on the ballot

Ruthless-RKO wrote: ↑13 Oct 2025, 01:43 Ryan Garcia was on the Inside the Ring show and said GGG didn’t deserve to be first ballot.

Of this particular Hall of Fame class he's not only the first ballot he's the first vote on the ballot.

As of this moment if Ryan Garcia retired he wouldn't make it onto the ballot at all.

bigdear wrote: ↑13 Oct 2025, 12:38

gilgamesh wrote: ↑02 Oct 2025, 12:24 Of the 2 fighters on that list GGG and Forrest are a no brainer, and outside of them, this is the weakest crop of Hall of Fame candidates I've ever seen.

I would have no problem with Steve Weisfeld or Jack Reiss getting in. Weisfeld was Showtime's Boxing commentator, and I think a Boxing Journalist for many many years before that. Reiss has refereed hundreds of bouts.

Fully agree with this take. So many boxers who deserve to be in and this is the best they can do. I don’t even know who those females are. I bet most of their own relatives don’t.

Isn't there some rule that people can only be on the ballot 5 times without being voted in before they're permanently removed from the ballot?

I'd bet anything there's been people that can no longer be nominated that would be better than a lot of the names here.

He’s done it.

Well deserved?

Gennadiy Golovkin, Nigel Benn, Antonio Tarver among 2026 hall of fame inductees

Gennadiy Golovkin, Nigel Benn and Antonio Tarver will be the headline 2026 inductees to the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

Golovkin, 42-2-1 (37 KOs), last fought in September 2022 and when past his best lost his third fight with Saul "Canelo" Alvarez. The middleweight king deserved better from that trilogy – he was held to a highly contentious draw in 2017 and lost another debatable decision the following year – but his quality was long confirmed before that.

By far the best middleweight in the world during the 2010s, Golovkin, for a time, was the most fearsome boxer in the world. Opponents like Matthew Macklin, Gabriel Rosado, Daniel Geale, Kell Brook, Grzegorz Proksa and Martin Murray stood no chance whatsoever against the educated slugger from Kazakhstan.

Benn was another known for stealing the senses of middleweights. The Londoner, who won world belts at 160lbs and super middleweight, retired in 1996 after two losses to Steve Collins but it is likely his rivalry with Chris Eubank and, more so, his victory over the heavily favored Gerald McClellan that defines him. McClellan was never the same again after Benn halted him in 10 rounds to successfully defend his WBC 168lbs title. Truth be told, given McClellan's fate, Benn didn't quite recover either. Benn, 42-5-1 (35 KOs), can also boast victories over Iran Barkley, Henry Wharton, Doug De Witt and Mauro Galvano.

Tarver, 31-6-1 (22 KOs), scored a huge upset in 2004 when he knocked out the great Roy Jones Jnr in 2004 to become the main man at light heavyweight. He would repeat the triumph, albeit on the cards, the following year after splitting two battles with Glen Johnson. The charismatic southpaw would also defeat Clinton Woods, Reggie Johnson and Montell Griffin.

Other inductees include: Naoko Fujioka and Jackie Nava in the Women's Modern Category; Russ Abner, Frank Cappuccino, Jimmy Glenn (posthumous), Dr Edwin "Flip" Homansky in the Non-participant category; Kevin Iole, Alex Wallau (posthumous) in the Observer category; and Jimmy Clabby (posthumous) in the Old Timer category.

gilgamesh wrote: ↑13 Oct 2025, 12:29

Ruthless-RKO wrote: ↑13 Oct 2025, 01:43 Ryan Garcia was on the Inside the Ring show and said GGG didn’t deserve to be first ballot.

Of this particular Hall of Fame class he's not only the first ballot he's the first vote on the ballot.

As of this moment if Ryan Garcia retired he wouldn't make it onto the ballot at all.

Not a chance, his name would never come into the discussion

Ruthless-RKO wrote: ↑13 Oct 2025, 01:43 Ryan Garcia was on the Inside the Ring show and said GGG didn’t deserve to be first ballot.

Fvck Ryan Garcia