Bleacher Report Boxing Pound-for-Pound Rankings: May 09

The May Bleacher Report Boxing Pound-for-Pound rankings are in.

I asked the top 10 boxing writers to submit their personal rankings and averaged them out to compile this list.

There are a few changes this month so without further ado.........

1. Manny Pacquiao

This has to be the least controversial number one pick in quite some time. Aside from the people who feel that Marquez beat Pacquiao in their rematch, there is almost universal agreement on this selection.

Manny's latest one-sided thrashing of Ricky Hatton made him the Ring Magazine champion at 140 pounds.

It will be interesting to see what happens with our rankings after former pound-for-pound king Mayweather Jr. and Marquez square off in July.

2. Juan Manuel Marquez

It is a testament to Marquez's greatness that he went 24 rounds with Pacquaio. Although suffering knockdowns in both fights, he managed to outbox Pacquiao in the center of the ring for much of both bouts. That has to count for something—win, lose, or draw.

At 35, Marquez knows his time is now. To get to number one, he knows he must fight the best now. If he should get by Mayweather, a third fight with Pacquiao would most certainly be next. A victory in both of those fights would guarantee nobody underestimates the great Mexican warrior again.

3. Bernard Hopkins

Is the ageless wonder planning to fight this year? A rumored fight with cruiserweight champ Adamek fell through, and now there are talks of a matchup with Carl Froch. It is truly amazing that Hopkins is still among the best fighters in the world at his age. He is the living embodiment of an all-time great.

4. Shane Mosley

I'd like to take this time to say thank you to Shane Mosley. If it were not for you, Shane, we would all think Margarito was a legitimate bad ass, and not the cheating scumbag he is. Thank you for blasting him out of the rankings, and hopefully out of boxing forever.

Now, is anyone out there willing to fight Shane? It was kinda sad seeing Shane almost begging to fight Pacquiao at the post-fight press conference this past weekend.

5. Vic Darchinyan

This little guy is rising fast. I don't know if it's due to his recent impressive performances, or Stoker's recent article about the guy wanting some of Pacquiao. Either way, if he was a stock, the time to be buying would be now. He has a tough fight coming up as he is moving up to 118 pounds to fight Joseph Agbeko.

6. Miguel Cotto

Cotto makes an astonishing comeback thanks to his most recent win. Also, the cloud of controversy surrounding Margarito and his plaster handwraps have led many in the boxing community to wonder if Cotto shouldn't still be undefeated.

His upcoming fight with Joshua Clottey should tell us all if Cotto has any lingering signs from the Margarito fight. Clottey should be able to give Cotto all he can handle.

7. Paul Williams

At this point, the Bleacher Report writers start to disagree. There were about five different guys at this spot, but the guy ranked the highest when I averaged the lists out was Paul Williams. Not having a true weight class might be hurting the "Punisher," but if he keeps winning he will get that big fight eventually.

There has been talk of him stepping up to super middleweight to fight Allan Green or Bernard Hopkins, and I'm not sure I like either fight. I think middleweight is William's true weight class, but who knows? Time will tell.

8. Nonito Donaire

I'll tell you what, fight fans in the Philippines have something to be proud of. Not only do they currently have the number one boxer on the planet, they have a guy in Donaire who could potentially occupy that position in the future.

This guy has all the tools. Power, boxing skills, good speed. Oh, and he also has that knockout over Darchinyan. Gary Shaw sure doesn't seem to be very interested in putting Vic back in there with Donaire, and I think I know why.

9. Israel Vazquez

OK, so it looks like Vazquez has finally been cleared to fight. One has to wonder what he has left after his brutal wars with Rafael Marquez? We shall find out soon enough.

10. Rafael Marquez

There were also several guys at this spot. Ivan Calderon. Juan Manuel Lopez. Fernado Montiel. I gave the nod to Marquez because of his previous rankings on our list, and the fact that he has an upcoming fight. Like Vazquez, we shall see what he has left soon enough.