Chad Dawson and the 10 Most Underrated Boxers Today
Many of the boxers on this list have the skills to be ranked among the best, but they don't have the acknowledgment from the fans that they can beat the best, resulting in matchups that sometimes don't make sense in terms of their position in their divisions.
Others are coming off their first career losses, making it much harder for them to get the respect they deserve after losing their only real key to marketability.
Either way, this is what makes up a small part of why these are the 10 most underrated boxers in boxing today.
No. 10: Steve Cunningham
1 of 10
IBF cruiserweight champion Steve Cunningham returned earlier this year to successfully defend his title, but it was an overlooked bout that nobody seemed to care about against Enad Licina.
Cunningham hasn't had much recognition in his career, and not since his fight with Tomasz Adamek in 2008 has he had a high-profile fight.
Maybe it's the lackluster division he is in, but there are many worthy challengers that he could be paired up with to challenge and possibly defeat.
He has beaten three of the top five cruiserweights rated by Ring magazine. He is ranked No. 1.
If the winner between the upcoming bout between Danny Green and Antonio Tarver needs a challenger, Cunningham is the man to pick.
No. 9: Joshua Clottey
2 of 10
Everybody seems to have forgotten everything Joshua Clottey did before his disappointing performance against pound-for-pound leader Manny Pacquiao in 2010.
Before that, he had lost a close split decision to Miguel Cotto and defeated Zab Judah. He actually is the last person to beat Judah.
He was scheduled to return on the undercard of Cotto vs. Ricardo Mayorga but had to pull out early.
If he returns this summer, expect to see the next best challenger for fighters like Timothy Bradley and Devon Alexander.
No. 8: Miguel Cotto
3 of 10
Miguel Cotto made the move to junior-middleweight last summer to take on an undefeated fighter in Yuri Foreman. He won that bout and took on Ricardo Mayorga. He defeated the "Matador" by 12th-round TKO.
In a division filled with hard-punching boxers like Alfredo Angulo and rising prospects like Saul Alvarez, this is a division Cotto can make a name for himself in since his last loss to Manny Pacquiao in 2009.
His September rematch with Antonio Margarito has been called off due to Margarito's eye not healing in enough time, so he could possibly get the winner of Ryan Rhodes and Alvarez. If not that, then maybe he can fight the winner of Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. vs. Sebastian Zbik.
.jpg?w=256)
No. 7: Glen Johnson
4 of 10
Glen Johnson is 42, and he is one step from getting his chance at Andre Ward to win the Showtime Super Six Super-Middleweight Tournament.
He needs to defeat his June 4th opponent, Carl Froch, first, and that's no easy task. Still, it's one he can accomplish, and he has beaten the odds many times before against fighters like Roy Jones Jr. and Antonio Tarver.
"The Road Warrior" is a suitable name for a guy who doesn't let you come to him. He will find and fight you in your hometown if he needs to.
Johnson is respected, but many fans don't expect him to make it past Froch. On the Showtime poll displayed during the Abraham vs. Ward bout, over 40 percent picked Froch and Ward to be in the finals.
No. 6: Timothy Bradley
5 of 10
Undefeated at 27-0, Timothy Bradley needs to keep it that way if he wants to get the big-name fights that are soon to come.
His style isn't pretty, but it's effective. It usually results in head-butts, cuts and technical decisions, so Bradley isn't a fan favorite.
His skills can't be ignored, though, and it seems most, like myself, spend more time talking about his head-butts than his technical boxing ability.
If there is a 140-pound fighter who is going to challenge Pacquiao after Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Juan Manuel Marquez, it's going to be Bradley. His work ethic and ability to get rough in the ring are something that could give the Filipino superstar many problems.
No. 5: Jorge Arce
6 of 10
Before Jorge Arce took on undefeated Puerto Rico champion Wilfredo Vazquez Jr. on the undercard of Manny Pacquiao vs. Shane Mosley, nobody was giving the four-time champion a chance to win. He defeated the 26-year-old by last-round TKO to win the WBO bantamweight title.
Being the only Mexican fighter to win four championship belts in four different weight divisions, Arce puts himself among the elite of Mexican's best fighters, and that's not easy to do in a country that has a rich history in boxing.
If his next fight comes against top-five pound-for-pound fighter Nonito Donaire, expect a wide gap between the favorite Donaire and the underdog Arce.
No. 4: Felix Sturm
7 of 10
German boxer Felix Sturm will be facing Matthew Macklin on June 25th, and it will be another bout that doesn't get him a lot of attention in the United States or anywhere outside of Europe.
Sturm has been one of the most underrated boxers of his generation, and it's been that way since he lost a controversial unanimous decision to Oscar De La Hoya in 2004.
He has spent over a year in the top 10 of the middleweight division and is currently ranked No. 1 by Ring magazine. The main goal will be to face the Ring and WBC champion Sergio Martinez sometime in the future.
Sturm would be the toughest fight for Martinez at middleweight, and if Martinez doesn't make the move to super-middleweight, this is the fight to make.
No. 3: Juan Diaz
8 of 10
Juan Diaz is only 2-4 in his last six fights, but two of those losses were to one of the best fighters in the world in Juan Manuel Marquez.
The lightweight division is currently blazing with talented fighters, including Marquez, Robert Guerrero, Brandon Rios and Humberto Soto.
Diaz is planning a comeback to boxing after losing to Marquez for the second time in July of 2010.
Depending on who he fights, don't expect him to be the favorite to beat a Guerrero or Rios—both of which are great fights either way.
No. 2: Chris John
9 of 10
The door may have actually opened for Indonesian fighter Chris John when Juan Manuel Lopez lost his featherweight title last month to Orlando Salido.
All the talk was around the two FW kingpins Yuriorkis Gamboa and Lopez fighting later this year. The upset loss that Lopez suffered gives John the perfect opportunity to prove he is the best in his division and a top-10 pound-for-pound fighter.
His 45-0 record is more than enough to prove he is worth the top spot in the division, but nobody seems to demand the fight between him and Gamboa.
It is the most important and significant fight to be made in the featherweight division right now.
No. 1: Chad Dawson
10 of 10
Former WBO and IBO cruiserweight champion Chad Dawson hasn't fought since losing to Canadian star Jean Pascal last August, and it seems he is forgotten among the best of the rising stars in the sport.
While Pascal prepares for this weekend's rematch between him and Bernard Hopkins, Dawson will be preparing to face Adrian Diaconu on the same night. The only losses between the two fighters are to Pascal.
The winners of both crossroad bouts should be on the same course to facing each other later this year or early next year.
.jpg?w=480)
.jpg?w=600 "Latest NBA Mock Draft 📝")
.jpg?w=600 "QBs Under Most Pressure ♨️")
