Ranking the Most Promising Boxers Yet to Win an Alphabet Title
Even in our era of alphabet-soup shenanigans, where the very words "world title" are frequently rendered utterly meaningless, collecting a belt is still an important step in a fighter's career. For rising contenders like the Charlo twins, Jermell and Jermall, it is the necessary next step for them on the potential road to superstardom.
A world title no longer makes a fighter. But it remains a meaningful symbol of success.
For this article, I've counted both interim world titles and even the absurd WBA "regular" world titles that I mock as a matter of course. This is a list of fighters who have yet to garner recognition as a world champion from anybody.
10. James DeGale, Super Middleweight
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It's a bit of a mystery to me why Badou Jack is fighting Anthony Dirrell for the WBC super middleweight title in April, rather than James DeGale. DeGale and Jack were supposed to fight last year in an eliminator, but the fight fell through after Jack got walloped via Round 1 KO by Derek Edwards in January.
After taking his nap, Jack beat 15-2-1 Jason Escalera and 26-7-1 Francisco Sierra and now suddenly he's back at the front of the line for a title shot.
DeGale, meanwhile, spent 2014 knocking out legitimate contenders. He handed Gevorg Khatchikian and Brandon Gonzales their first losses and stopped tough Marco Antonio Periban, who had previously fought to a draw with Jack.
Hardcore boxing fans know better than to expect logical consistency from the alphabet-soup universe. But DeGale should get his own shot this year.
9. Thabiso Mchunu, Cruiserweight
2 of 10The only reason I have Thabiso Mchunu as low as nine on this list is because he campaigns at cruiserweight, one of the sport's most overlooked divisions. And at 5'11", he really lacks the length to match up well with modern heavyweights.
But at 200 pounds, he's a true physical specimen. He established himself as a major player in the division in August 2013 when he handled longtime heavyweight contender Fast Eddie Chambers via unanimous decision.
I see Mchunu as an inevitable world champion at cruiser. A championship run will at least make him a huge star in his native South Africa. He's even the kind of exciting athlete who has a chance to bring attention to cruiserweight here in the United States.
8. David Lemieux, Middleweight
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David Lemieux started his career as a hard-punching phenom. By the time he was 22, he had already compiled a record of 25-0 with 24 KOs.
But he ran into a couple of roadblocks in 2011. He was stopped by Marco Antonio Rubio and lost a decision to Joachim Alcine. A lot of promising freight trains have ended up permanently derailed by a year like that.
Lemieux has re-emerged in the four years since as a better all-around boxer. Last year he knocked out Fernando Guerrero and Gabriel Rosado. Those are the kind of wins that should have him in position for a title shot.
I would never pick Lemieux to win against Gennady Golovkin. But Golovkin's ultimate future is going to involve jumping up to super middleweight to face Andre Ward.
At 26, Lemieux is young enough to stick around and be in the mix after GGG moves up.
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7. Julian Williams, Light Middleweight
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There's more young talent at light middleweight right now than in any other division in boxing. And Julian Williams is one of those bright lights at 154 pounds.
Williams was a standout amateur boxer. As a professional, his best win to date was a stoppage of former welterweight champion Freddy Hernandez. That fight came in the middle of a six-fight losing streak for Hernandez, so it doesn't mean what it would have a half-decade ago.
Before I'm ready to declare Williams a future champion in the super competitive 154-pound division, I'm going to need to see him notch a truly meaningful win against a fellow contender. But there's no question he's got the potential.
6. Viktor Postol, Light Welterweight
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Undefeated light welterweight Viktor Postol is overdue for a title shot. In 2013, he beat tough gatekeeper Henry Lundy. Last year, he recorded a major statement win by stopping Selcuk Aydin.
The Ukrainian Postol is in a familiar position for talented Eastern European contenders. He still lacks enough name recognition in the United States for promoters to risk matching him with their stars.
Hopefully, that starts to change for Postol in 2015. He doesn't have the monster power of Gennady Golovkin or Sergey Kovalev and isn't a straight-ahead bulldozer like Ruslan Provodnikov.
But he is one of the best boxers in the world at 140 pounds and deserves a shot at a belt.
5. Adrian Estrella, Super Featherweight
6 of 10Along with Fernando Vargas, Adrian Estrella is a hard-punching contender who looks ready to restore some excitement to the super featherweight division. At just 23, he's already 22-0 with 20 KOs.
Estrella hasn't compiled a resume of victims on par with Vargas yet, but he turned in a great performance last October against former world champion Celestino Caballero, knocking him down four times en route to a one-sided unanimous decision.
This was a case of a young talent beating an over-the-hill veteran who was coming up in weight. Still, Estrella clearly has the potential to help bring a pulse back to 130 pounds.
4. Francisco Vargas, Super Featherweight
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The super featherweight division languished in relative obscurity in 2014. With Mikey Garcia inactive most of the year and the division's other best fighter, Takashi Uchiyama, campaigning in Japan, 130 pounds has largely been off the radar in North America.
But Francisco Vargas could be the man to bring the spotlight back to the division. Vargas ended 2013 with an outstanding unanimous-decision victory over tough contender Jerry Belmontes.
He then went 4-0 in 2014. After decisioning Abner Cotto, he stopped former star Juan Manuel Lopez, veteran Genaro Camargo and fellow contender Will Tomlinson.
Vargas will almost certainly fight for a title in 2015. He could emerge as an exciting new star in the sport.
3. Artur Beterbiev, Light Heavyweight
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Although he has just seven professional fights, former Russian amateur standout Artur Beterbiev is all set to inject even more excitement into the light heavyweight division, which is already one of boxing's hottest.
Beterbiev has stopped all seven of his opponents to date. He looked particularly dominant in battering former champion Tavoris Cloud.
With dangerous power and solid technical skill, Beterbiev has all the tools to be a major player. He's made the smart move of settling in fight-mad Montreal, a city famous for embracing fighters from around the world.
Beterbiev is a former rival of champion Sergey Kovalev from the Russian amateur scene and holds a win over him at that level. When they finally meet again in the professional ranks, it will likely be a super fight.
2. Jermell Charlo, Light Middleweight
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The younger Charlo twin by a minute, Jermell has also compiled the more impressive record to date. Trained by Ronnie Shields, Charlo was an amateur standout and has been viewed as a potential superstar since his teen years.
Charlo has compiled a 25-0 record with 11 KOs and has looked outstanding against credible, C-level opponents like Demetrius Hopkins, Charlie Ota and Gabriel Rosado. He's scheduled to take on former world champion Vanes Martirosyan at the end of this month.
That will be a solid test for Charlo, but I expect him to pass it. Even in a division as crowded as 154 pounds, he should get the opportunity to fight for an alphabet belt before the end of 2015.
1. Jermall Charlo, Light Middleweight
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Jermall Charlo is a minute older and an inch taller than his twin brother, Jermell. They are both outstanding talents, but Jermall is the brother with the bigger punching power, and that's why I've rated him at the top of this list.
So far Charlo is 20-0 with 16 KOs. He was supposed to fight for the IBF belt a year ago against Carlos Molina, on the Saul Alvarez-Alfredo Angulo card. But that fight fell through when Molina was detained on an outstanding warrant.
Charlo is managed by boxing power broker Al Haymon. Haymon does not take risks with his young fighters, so it says a lot about his assessment of Charlo that he was willing to match him with a crafty veteran like Molina after fewer than 20 fights.
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