The Pound for Pound best fighters list is something that's been in the hearts and minds of fans for a long time. Everyone wants to know who the best all around fighter is.
With boxing being one of the oldest sports around, it has produced some of the world's most legendary athletes. Being the P4P greatest is something that every top boxer strives for.
In 2017, we've head great shake-ups that really made a shuffle of how such a list might look like. From all time greats losing in devastating fashion, to hungry up-and-comers claiming the top spot for themselves.
Now that 2018 is upon us, let's take a look at how that Pound For Pound ranking list looks:
1. Gennady Golovkin
On top of our Pound For Pound list we have the undisputed king of the Middleweight division. Holding the IBW, IBO and WBC World Middleweight titles as well as the WBA Super World Middleweight title, Gennady Golovkin has defeated great fighters like Daniel Jacobs, David Lemieux, Kell Book, Curtis Stevens and many others. With a 87% KO ratio in his 37 wins, Golovkin is undefeated. The only dent in his record comes in the face of our Number 2 P4P boxer - Canelo Alvarez with whom he fought to a controversial draw.
2. Saul Alvarez
Saul "Canelo" Alvarez comes at Number 2 on our P4P list. Ever since his one and only loss to Floyd Mayweather Jr., Canelo has been riding on the wings of some great and dominant victories. He holds victories over greats like Miguel Cotto, Amir Khan, Shane Mosley, James Kirkland and many others. Canelo has shown how much he improves after a loss so expect him to come out even stronger after his controversial draw to Golovkin.
3. Vasyl Lomachenko
Vasyl Lomachenko is one of the boxers with the smallest number of pro matches on the list but the names on there are all meaningful. Taking on the very dangerous Orlando Salido, who is the only one to defeat Lomachenko, in just his second bout, Vasyl has made a statement with his career. Going victorious in all of his other bouts, Lomachenko has defeated the likes of Gary Russell Jr., Jason Sosa, Nicholas Walters and most notably in late 2017 he made an example of pound for pound great Guillermo Rigondeaux. In that particular bout, Lomachenko put on a boxing school on one of the greatest current boxers, thus throwing him in the Number 3 spot on our list.
4. Terence Crawford
The 32-0 undefeated Terence Crawford has looked seemingly unstoppable and that is not something that appears to be changing. Defeating big names like Julius Indongo, Felix Diaz, Ricky Burns, Yuriorkis Gamboa and John Molina, he has cemented his top spot on the P4P list. Only time will tell what the future holds for one of boxing greatest current champions.
5. Mikey Garcia
After a two year break, Mikey Garcia is back and better than ever. Moving up to Super Lightweight, Garcia has added some great names to his already very impressive record. Victories over Dejan Zlaticanin and Adrien Broner have landed him at the doors of a title shot in early 2018 against champion Sergey Lipinets. With a record of 37 wins and 0 losses, a win over Lipinets will move Mikey Garcia into a very strong P4P position.
6. Keith Thurman
Keith Thurman has a lot going for him. Despite the fact that he's fought only once in 2017, his opponent was none other than boxing great Danny Garcia. Victories over Robert Guerrero, Luis Collazo and Shawn Porter give Thurman a very strong backing in his record. With only great possibilities ahead of him, we can expect great things from Keith Thurman.
7. Leo Santa Cruz
Leo Santa Cruz has quite an impressive record. A list of wins that covers most top prospects in his division. Some of his biggest standouts though are his matches with Abner Mares and Carl Frampton. The latter one being a rivalry that unfolds in two back to back matches, all ending with majority decisions after 12 hard fought rounds. In one of these, Carl Frampton gave Leo Santa Cruz his only loss to date. That same loss would be avenged in the second match. With hopes of a third, we'll have to wait and see what 2018 has in store.
8. Naoya Inoue
Considered by many to be one of the greatest boxers on the planet right now and living up to the alias "Monster", Naoya Inoue has a 87% KO ratio in his 15 wins. He has no losses and for being only 24 years of age, he still has a long way ahead to develop. Being the current WBO Junior Bantamweight champion, all eyes are on him. Let's hope 2018 will be a year full of success for Naoya Inoue.
9. Errol Spence Jr
Errol Spence Jr. is a big standout in the Welterweight division. In 2017 Spence won the IBF Welterweight Title off of a dangerous and hungry Kell Brook. Previously handing losses to boxing standouts like of Chris Algieri, Samuel Vargas and Alejandro Barrera; Spence's undefeated streak continues. Winning 19 of his 22 fights by KO/TKO, Spence makes a mark as one of the most serious contenders for the Welterweight crown.
10. Anthony Joshua
Anthony Joshua is going down the path of becoming the face of boxing. One of the most popular fighters on this list, AJ has lots of fans. Some people questioned Joshua's record, stating that up until most recently, he hasn't fought anyone of note. However wins over heavyweight contenders such as Dillian Whyte and Eric Molina put AJ in front of his biggest test to date. In 2017 Anthony Joshua fought and knocked out boxing legend Wladimir Klitschko in a very tense matchup. After that, defeated Carlos Takam as a replacement Kubrat Pulev that same year. Here we stand hoping that 2018 will see the grand clash of heavyweights between Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder.
With all that being said, let's hope 2018 brings us great matches and shakes things up even more than 2017 did.
