Top Rankin’

Sergio Martinez will fight anybody at anytime and anywhere. His style is difficult to deal with and pretty crowd pleasing. His knockout of Paul Williams thrust his name into prominence, but this may be just the beginning of the Argentinean’s reign at middleweight. He’s certainly the king of the 160 lbs division and it will be interesting to see who he faces next. Simply put, Martinez is game and ready to fight anyone.

Nonito Donaire
Record: 26-1, 18 KOs
Titles: WBC & WBO Bantamweight Champion
Last Fight: TKO vs. Fernando Montiel (2/19/11)
Next Fight: TBA

Donaire is primed to become a massive star in boxing because of his ability, youth and the fact that he’s already a massive star in the Philippines – much like Manny Pacquiao is today. His devastation of Fernando Montiel in February was his fourth in a row and eighth in his last nine fights. His plans on moving up in weight could lead to some major fights in the near future. It’s unfortunate that his current situation with Golden Boy Promotions and Top Rank leaves is future in limbo. Hopefully it gets resolved soon and maybe we can see Donaire in the ring with recently crowned WBO 122 lbs champion Jorge Arce.

Juan Manuel Marquez
Record: 52-5-1, 38 KOs
Titles: WBO & WBA Lightweight “Super” Champion
Last Fight: TKO vs. Michael Katsidis (11/27/10)
Next Fight: Nov 12th vs. Manny Pacquiao

Juan Manuel Marquez is the last man to give Manny Pacquiao a challenge when he narrowly lost their 2008 rematch of their first bout which ended in draw. But in the three years things have changed. Pacquiao is a monster at 147 and Marquez body struggles to get to 145 lbs, where he was soundly thumped by Floyd Mayweather. He’s finally (and deservingly) been given a third fight with Pacquiao, but that may not be the right fight considering how Pacquiao has carried his power through the weight classes. Regardless of who he fights next, Marquez’ place in boxing history is set.

Bernard Hopkins
Record: 52-5-2, 32 KOs
Titles: None
Last Fight: UD vs. Jean Pascal (5/21/11)
Next Fight: TBA vs. Lucian Bute or Chad Dawson

The 46-year-old avenged a controversial draw with Jean Pascal with one of the most memorable performances of his career when he scored a unanimous decision victory in their rematch and became the oldest boxer to win a major title. He fought with vigor and made the younger Pascal look like a senior citizen. The scary thing, B-Hop says his most exciting fights have yet to come. With a huge fight with Super Middleweight titan Lucian Bute or up-and-coming Chad Dawson on the horizon, we don’t doubt Hopkins one bit. If you question Hopkins place on the list, ask yourself this – who has ever dominated Bernard Hopkins?

Wladimir Klitschko
Record: 55-3, 49 KOs
Titles: WBA, WBO, IBF & IBO Heavyweight Champion
Last Fight: KO vs. Samuel Peter (9/11/10)
Next Fight: July 2 vs. David Haye

Although the Klitschko brothers must accept the blame for making the heavyweight division dull, the younger Klitschko has reeled off 13 straight victories since 2004 and will finally get an opportunity to shut the trap of David Haye on July 2nd. Although most will say he hasn’t fought anybody, be reminded that Samuel Peter wasn’t exactly a nobody until he stepped into the ring with Klitschko. It’s not his fault that the division is thin.

Andre Ward
Record: 24-0, 13 KOs
Titles: WBA Super Middleweight Champion
Last Fight: UD vs. Arthur Abraham (5/15/11)
Next Fight: TBA vs. Carl Froch

The 2004 Olympian showed his impressive boxing pedigree when he took Arthur Abraham to school for 12 rounds to retain his WBA title and land a spot in the finals of the Super Six tournament against Carl Froch. He’s crafty, clever and a deceptively quick fighter who can switch stances with ease. The 168 division is rich with talent, but he’s definitely the cream of the crop. Now, all he has to do is get past Carl Froch to prove it.

Timothy Bradley
Record: 27-0, 11 KOs
Titles: WBO & WBC Junior Welterweight Champion
Last Fight: Technical Decision vs. Devon Alexander (1/29/11)
Next Fight: TBA

Bradley didn’t do himself any favors in a stinker of a fight against Devon Alexander, but the truth of the matter is that Bradley is one tough nut to crack. Unfortunately, he comes from the Winky Wright school of negotiations when he turned down a unification bout against Amir Khan (a fight that he asked for, mind you) with a minimum of a million and a half dollars in favor of…well…nothing. He didn’t get Pacquiao and everyone else in the junior welterweight division is tied up with fights this summer. He blew it, big time.

Amir Khan
Record: 25-1, 17 KOs
Titles: WBA Junior Welterweight Champion
Last Fight: Technical Decision vs. Paul McCloskey (4/16/11)
Next Fight: July 23rd vs. Zab Judah

Amir Khan has the tools to become a big star. His victory against Paul McCloskey was a tune up for a junior middleweight unification fight against Timothy Bradley. But Bradley shockingly declined to face Khan for a career high minimum of $1.4 million (with an upside on the earnings). Zab Judah has stepped up to the plate to face Khan on July 23rd in what appears to be a more exciting fight.