Terence Crawford is once again the Pound for Pound King after becoming a four-weight world champion on Saturday night.
‘Bud’ took the WBA title from Israil Madrimov and added the vacant WBO version to take unified glory for the third time in his career. Crawford won a unanimous decision on the cards, with the consensus being the Omaha man did enough to take a 7-5 or 8-4 victory.
Crawford overtakes Oleksandr Usyk and Naoya Inoue to reclaim the P4P crown a year after taking the top spot for the first time when defeating Errol Spence Jr. Having held the summit for a few months previously, Crawford was dethroned by Inoue last December. He had to be patient after being out of the ring for another year.
Crawford’s most significant contention is his lack of activity, though. Fighting once every twelve months won’t do him any favors in the long run. As soon as Usyk or Inoue record another win as the more active champions, Crawford must be content to drop the rankings.
Usyk drops to two for now. If the Ukrainian heavyweight star defeats Tyson Fury in December, Usyk will regain the number one position whenever that rematch occurs.
Inoue, who fights TJ Doheny in the fall, will gain nothing from an expected stoppage in that fight. He must be content with third place until another significant achievement in 2025.
Canelo Alvarez is in a similar position in his fight against Edgar Berlanga. A victory over the Puerto Rican puncher will leave the Mexican superstar unmoved. Jesse Rodriguez, who sits fifth, could move up if he can win another world title or defeat another legend.
Vasiliy Lomachenko’s decision to take the rest of the year off will mean he could be out of the top ten by 2025. However, Dmitry Bivol can make a significant move if he can overhaul Artur Beterbiev in October to become undisputed at light-heavyweight.
The list concludes with lightweight and super-lightweight stars Gervonta Davis, Devin Haney, and Shakur Stevenson. Although all three have failed to secure those elusive Pay Per View fights that could elevate their ratings.
WBN Pound for Pound Top 10 – August 2024
1 Terence CRAWFORD
2 Oleksandr USYK
3 Naoya INOUE
4 CANELO Alvarez
5 Jesse RODRIGUEZ
6 Vasiliy LOMACHENKO
7 Dmitry BIVOL
8 Gervonta DAVIS
9 Devin HANEY
10 Shakur STEVENSON
Read all articles and exclusive interviews by Phil Jay. Learn more about the author, experienced boxing writer, and World Boxing News Editor since 2010. Follow on Twitter @PhilJWBN.
