Ranking the Best Boxing Fights in 2014 So Far

Boxing fans know to count on fireworks when Argentine gunslinger Lucas Matthysse is on the card. But his scrap with John Molina last April surpassed expectations. 

Matthysse came back from two knockdowns in Rounds 2 and 5 and a cut over his eye from an accidental headbutt in Round 3 to drop Molina in Rounds 8 and 10 and knock him out in the 11th. It's the consensus Fight of the Year as of now.

But there are other worthy candidates, drawn from the smallest and biggest weight classes in the sport. Some of the best fights of 2014 so far have featured major stars, while others have launched new faces onto the scene.  

7. Terence Crawford TKO 9 Yuriorkis Gamboa

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After traveling to Scotland in March to capture the WBO lightweight title from Ricky Burns, Terence Crawford wasted no time in going after the biggest fight he could make for his first defense. In June he went back home to his native Omaha, Nebraska, to face undefeated Cuban star Yuriorkis Gamboa. 

This was the biggest showdown to take place at 135 pounds in recent years. In the first few rounds, it appeared the young champion may have taken on too much, as the experienced and athletic Gamboa took control. 

But Crawford showed why so many observers have already tapped him as a future superstar as he adjusted and switched to a southpaw stance. The second part of the fight developed into a massacre, as Crawford dropped Gamboa in Rounds 5 and 8 and twice in Round 9 before the referee waved off the count. 

Despite the ultimate one-sided nature of this fight, it was a thriller. 

6. Chris Algieri SD Ruslan Provodnikov

Chris Algieri was undefeated but relatively unknown when he faced WBO light welterweight champion Ruslan Provodnikov last June. A lot of observers complained that the red-hot Provodnikov wasn't facing a more high-profile name. 

Provodnikov looked set to overwhelm Algieri early, knocking him down twice and closing his eye in the very first round. But Algieri showed tremendous heart and fought intelligently from the outside the rest of the way. 

Algieri took the belt with a split-decision win. It not only earned him the title but also a life-changing payday against Manny Pacquiao on pay-per-view this November. 

5. Floyd Mayweather MD Marcos Maidana

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It had been more than a decade since Floyd Mayweather had a truly competitive fight, and few observers expected that to change last May when he faced tough Argentine Marcos Maidana. I didn't hear or read a single person outside of Maidana's own team claiming he had a chance to even make the fight competitive.

But Maidana used his rough, brawling style to maul Mayweather against the ropes for significant portions of their fight. The pound-for-pound king adjusted mid-fight and pulled away down the stretch. But when the final bell rang, the decision was far from clear.

Mayweather ended up walking away with a majority decision. But the fight was close enough and exciting enough to warrant a return bout in September.

4. Steve Cunningham UD Amir Mansour

It's hard not to see Amir Mansour as a classic "what might have been" story. He lost 8.5 years from the heart of his career to a prison sentence an then served another 14 months at age 39 as he was starting to get his career back on track.

At age 42, the heavyweight was a still undefeated 20-0 with 15 KOs when he faced former cruiserweight champion Steve Cunningham last April in Philadelphia. Facing a far more experienced opponent, Mansour proved that some old dogs can still hunt.

For his own part, Cunningham turned in one of the gutsiest performances of the year, surviving a brutal Round 5 when he hit the canvas twice. With the fight still up for grabs, the final rounds were fought at an intense level.

Cunningham closed out the show by knocking Mansour down in the 10th and final round to lock up his unanimous-decision win.

3. Robert Guerrero UD Yoshihiro Kamegai

Robert Guerrero needed to get back in the win column when he returned to action last June for the first time since going down to Floyd Mayweather in May 2013. He also needed an eye-catching performance if he hoped to reassert himself in the always competitive welterweight division.

Japan's Yoshihiro Kamegai proved to be just the sort of spirited opponent he was looking for. Kamegai hardly took a step back all fight, and the action was fast-paced and violent, round after round.

Guerrero won nine rounds on two cards and eight on the third, but that hardly tells the story. Each round was full of stand-and-trade exchanges, with both men taking and receiving heavy punishment.

The Ghost left positioned for another high-profile fight at 147 pounds, but Kamegai got his name on the radar in the United States and should be back for another war with somebody in the future.

2. Francisco Rodriguez Jr. UD Katsunari Takayama

Hardcore boxing fans often bemoan the lack of attention paid to the smallest fighters in the sport. This strawweight IBF and WBO unification bout is a classic example. It's arguably the best fight of 2014, and few fans in the United States have even seen it. 

Of those of us who have, almost everyone saw it on YouTube. 

Rodriguez knocked down Takayama in the third and walked away with both belts after a unanimous decision. He was stopped by Roman Gonzalez at flyweight in 2013 and lost a six-rounder early in his career. But at only 21, he has to be viewed as a potential rising star. 

1. Lucas Matthysse KO 11 John Molina

There was good reason to expect action when Lucas Matthysse faced John Molina last April. Matthysse has been the most destructive puncher in the world at 140 pounds over the past few years. Although he was coming up from lightweight, Molina has always been a big puncher and looked to have the frame to bring his power up with him.

Molina was determined to stand up to The Machine, and the strategy looked like it might pay off early, as he dropped Matthysse in the second and fifth rounds. Matthysse only reacted by coming harder, and as the fight went on, neither man ceded an inch of ring space.

Bleeding badly from a cut by an accidental headbutt, Matthysse nevertheless began to take control of the fight. He sent Molina to the canvas in Round 8 and again in Round 10.

When Matthysse dropped Molina hard for a third time in Round 11, referee Pat Russell waved off the count.