Men's pound-for-pound rankings: Where does Opetaia land after another KO win?

Jai Opetaia is a fighter without a major world title, but he continues to climb ESPN's pound-for-pound rankings.

Opetaia defeated then-WBC cruiserweight champion Noel Mikaelian by ninth-round TKO on Saturday, but Mikaelian's title was not at stake. The WBC declined to sanction the bout after Mikaelian chose to face Opetaia rather than his mandatory challenger, David Benavidez.

Opetaia, who signed with Zuffa Boxing in January, was the IBF cruiserweight champion when he faced Brandon Glanton in March, but the IBF stripped him after he chose to fight for the Zuffa Boxing cruiserweight title instead. It was the second time Opetaia had been stripped of the IBF title. In 2023, he was also stripped after choosing to face Ellis Zorro instead of mandatory challenger Mairis Briedis.

Regardless of the titles, Opetaia continues to demolish his opponents. Against Mikaelian, he once again displayed his power, dropping Mikaelian in Round 9 before finishing him. Opetaia won the secondary WBA "regular" title and, after the fight, made clear his desire to face WBA champion David Benavidez, who got into the ring for a faceoff.

With the victory, Opetaia moves up one spot to No. 9.

Our panel of Joe Tessitore, Teddy Atlas, Nick Parkinson, James Regan, Eric Woodyard, Bernardo Pilatti, Salvador Rodriguez, Jim Zirolli, Michael Mascaro, Aladdin Freeman, Victor Lopez and Damian Delgado Averhoff shares its votes.

More ESPN rankings: Divisional rankings and women's pound-for-pound rankings.

Note: Results are through Sept. 17.

1. NAOYA INOUE

RECORD: 33-0, 27 KOs
DIVISION: Junior featherweight (undisputed champion)
LAST FIGHT: W (UD12) Junto Nakatani, May 2
NEXT FIGHT: TBA

A champion in four weight classes and undisputed in two, "Monster" Inoue is the definition of a pound-for-pound fighter. His victory over fellow Japanese champion Junto Nakatani helped Inoue take the No. 1 spot from Oleksandr Usyk. His next fight could be a highly anticipated matchup with Jesse "Bam" Rodriguez in early 2027. If that fight doesn't happen next, Inoue has said he plans to move up in weight looking to become a champion in a fifth division.

2. OLEKSANDR USYK

RECORD: 25-0, 16 KOs
DIVISION: Heavyweight
LAST FIGHT: W (TKO11) Rico Verhoeven, May 23
NEXT FIGHT: TBA

Usyk appears to be entering the final stages of a Hall of Fame career, but he remains the best heavyweight in the world. Usyk struggled in his fight against former kickboxing champion Verhoeven, then vacated his WBA, IBF and WBC titles and has yet to announce his next fight. Usyk, an undisputed champion at cruiserweight and a two-time undisputed champion at heavyweight, said before the Verhoeven fight that he hoped to fight twice more: A rematch with the winner of the Daniel Dubois vs. Fabio Wardley rematch and a potential trilogy fight with Tyson Fury.

3. JESSE RODRIGUEZ

RECORD: 24-0, 17 KOs
DIVISION: Bantamweight (champion)
LAST FIGHT: W (KO6) Antonio Vargas, June 13
NEXT FIGHT: TBA

"Bam" Rodriguez became a champion in a third division by stopping Fernando Vargas in his first fight at 118 pounds. He is now just one division below Naoya Inoue, the undisputed junior featherweight champion, setting up one of the most exciting matchups boxing can offer. But Rodriguez's manager and trainer, Robert Garcia, said after the Vargas fight that he wants Rodriguez to have one more fight at bantamweight before moving up to face Inoue. "It doesn't matter how much money they show us out there, one more fight is what we need," Garcia said. "And I would have it by October, early November, and we're ready. Then we'll be ready."

4. DAVID BENAVIDEZ

RECORD: 32-0, 26 KOs
DIVISION: Light heavyweight (champion) and cruiserweight (unified champion)
LAST FIGHT: W (KO6) Gilberto Ramirez, May 2
NEXT FIGHT: TBA

Benavidez isn't wasting any time with his career. After failing to get Canelo Alvarez in the ring at super middleweight, he began moving up in weight and dominating opponents in each division. In his first fight at cruiserweight, "The Mexican Monster" stopped "Zurdo" Ramirez in impressive fashion to become the WBA and WBO champion. His next fight could be a unification bout against newly appointed WBC champion Michal Cieslak, but a matchup with Jai Opetaia, who holds the WBA "regular" title, should crown the best cruiserweight in the world.

5. SHAKUR STEVENSON

RECORD: 25-0, 11 KOs
DIVISION: Junior welterweight (champion)
LAST FIGHT: W (UD12) Teofimo Lopez Jr., Jan. 31
NEXT FIGHT: TBA

Stevenson could be higher on this list, and at 28 years old, he has plenty of time to keep climbing. His defensive skills are unmatched, and his underrated power has carried over as he has moved up in weight. Already a champion in four weight classes, Stevenson is rarely in trouble inside the ring. His one-sided victory over Lopez puts Stevenson in a strong position to unify belts at 140 pounds or even move up to welterweight, where Lopez, Ryan Garcia, Devin Haney and Liam Paro, all champions, compete.

6. DMITRY BIVOL

RECORD: 25-1, 12 KOs
DIVISION: Light heavyweight (unified champion)
LAST FIGHT: W (UD12) Michael Eifert, May 30
NEXT FIGHT: TBA

Bivol has been slowed by injuries and has fought just twice in the past two years, but the former undisputed light heavyweight champion remains the best fighter in the division. He went the distance against Eifert in his return after more than a year away and has not fought since. Bivol is expected to face his WBO mandatory challenger, Callum Smith, in December, but the fight has not been officially announced.

7. DEVIN HANEY

RECORD: 33-0, 1 NC, 15 KOs
DIVISION: Welterweight (champion)
LAST FIGHT: W (UD12) Brian Norman Jr., Nov. 22, 2025
NEXT FIGHT: TBA

Haney's most recent fight was a dominant victory over Norman in November to win the WBO welterweight title. After his loss to Ryan Garcia in April 2024 -- a result later changed to a no decision after Garcia tested positive for a banned substance -- Haney has won two consecutive fights. Haney has been public about wanting a rematch with Garcia, which never materialized after their first meeting, but now it could be an option for Haney -- and a title unification bout.

8. JARON "BOOTS" ENNIS

RECORD: 36-0, 32 KOs
DIVISION: Junior middleweight (unified champion)
LAST FIGHT: W (TKO7) Xander Zayas, June 27
NEXT FIGHT: TBA

Ennis' victory over Zayas was exactly what the former welterweight champion needed to move his career forward. Zayas called for the fight, but Ennis dropped him three times before stopping him in Round 7 to win the WBO and WBA junior middleweight titles. A potential mega fight between Ennis and WBC interim champion Vergil Ortiz Jr. has been in the works for months, but disagreements between Ortiz and his promoter, Oscar De La Hoya, have stopped the fight from happening. With those issues seemingly out of the way, could the fight finally happen next?

9. JAI OPETAIA     Previous ranking: 10

RECORD: 31-0, 24 KOs
DIVISION: Cruiserweight
LAST FIGHT: W (UD12) Noel Mikaelian, Sept. 12
NEXT FIGHT: TBA

Opetaia has been stripped of the IBF title twice for failing to face his mandatory challengers, and the WBC declined to sanction his fight against its champion, Noel Mikaelian. Mikaelian was supposed to face mandatory challenger David Benavidez. Regardless of the titles, Opetaia remains the top-ranked cruiserweight in the division, and Benavidez, the WBA and WBO champion, could be the fighter standing in his way. Opetaia has said he wants to unify all four major belts at 200 pounds, and a fight against Benavidez could be one of the biggest cruiserweight matchups the 200-pound division has seen in years.

10. JUNTO NAKATANI     Previous ranking: 9

RECORD: 32-1, 24 KOs
DIVISION: Bantamweight
LAST FIGHT: L (UD12) Naoya Inoue, May 2
NEXT FIGHT: TBA

Nakatani has climbed the rankings, winning world titles in three divisions before facing fellow Japanese champion Inoue. Nakatani held his own against Inoue, particularly in the later rounds, but lost by unanimous decision while challenging for the undisputed junior featherweight championship. A big southpaw with power in both hands, Nakatani has 24 knockouts in 32 victories. He is expected to remain at 122 pounds for his next fight.

The formula

The rankings are based on a descending points system, with a first-place vote awarding 10 points, a second-place vote awarding nine points and so on. A tie goes to the fighter with the highest ranking, then the one with the most votes at that ranking.

Others receiving votes: Ryan Garcia (6), Emanuel Navarrete (4), Oscar Collazo (4), Rafael Espinoza (3), Raymond Muratalla (3), Canelo Alvarez (2), O'Shaquie Foster (2).

How our writers voted

Atlas: 1. Usyk, 2. Inoue, 3. Benavidez, 4. Rodriguez, 5. Stevenson, 6. Bivol, 7. Ennis, 8. Haney, 9. Muratalla, 10. Garcia

Tessitore: 1. Inoue, 2. Rodriguez, 3. Usyk, 4. Stevenson, 5. Benavidez, 6. Opetaia, 7. Haney, 8. Ennis, 9. Garcia, 10. Nakatani

Parkinson: 1. Inoue, 2. Usyk, 3. Benavidez, 4. Stevenson, 5. Rodriguez, 6. Bivol, 7. Haney, 8. Opetaia, 9. Ennis, 10. Garcia

Regan: 1. Inoue, 2. Usyk, 3. Rodriguez, 4. Benavidez, 5. Stevenson, 6. Bivol, 7. Haney, 8. Ennis, 9. Garcia, 10. Opetaia

Rodriguez: 1. Inoue, 2. Usyk, 3. Rodriguez, 4. Bivol, 5. Benavidez, 6. Stevenson, 7. Collazo, 8. Navarrete, 9. Ennis, 10. Opetaia

Osuna: 1. Inoue, 2. Rodriguez, 3. Usyk, 4. Benavidez, 5. Stevenson, 6. Bivol, 7. Haney, 8. Ennis, 9. Nakatani, 10. Navarrete

Woodyard: 1. Usyk, 2. Inoue, 3. Stevenson, 4. Rodriguez, 5. Benavidez, 6. Bivol, 7. Nakatani, 8. Haney, 9. Ennis, 10. Opetaia

Pilatti: 1. Inoue, 2. Usyk, 3. Benavidez, 4. Rodriguez, 5. Stevenson, 6. Haney, 7. Bivol, 8. Ennis, 9. Opetaia, 10. Muratalla

Zirolli: 1. Usyk, 2. Inoue, 3. Stevenson, 4. Rodriguez, 5. Benavidez, 6. Haney, 7. Ennis, 8. Opetaia, 9. Bivol, 10. Nakatani

Mascaro: 1. Inoue, 2. Usyk, 3. Rodriguez, 4. Benavidez, 5. Stevenson, 6. Haney, 7. Bivol, 8. Ennis, 9. Espinoza, 10. Nakatani

Freeman: 1. Inoue, 2. Rodriguez, 3. Stevenson, 4. Usyk, 5. Benavidez, 6. Haney, 7. Bivol, 8. Nakatani, 9. Foster, 10. Espinoza

Lopez: 1. Inoue, 2. Usyk, 3. Benavidez, 4. Rodriguez, 5. Bivol, 6. Stevenson, 7. Ennis, 8. Haney, 9. Nakatani, 10. Opetaia

Delgado Averhof: 1. Inoue, 2. Usyk, 3. Benavidez, 4. Rodriguez, 5. Bivol, 6. Stevenson, 7. Ennis, 8. Hanney, 9. Alvarez, 10. Opetaia

ESPN experts' poll

First place: Inoue (10), Usyk (3)

Second place: Usyk (7), Inoue (3), Rodriguez (3)

Third place: Benavidez (5), Rodriguez (3), Stevenson (3), Usyk (2)

Fourth place: Rodriguez (6), Benavidez (3), Stevenson (2), Usyk (1), Bivol (1)

Fifth place: Benavidez (5), Stevenson (5), Bivol (2), Rodriguez (1)

Sixth place: Bivol (5), Haney (4), Stevenson (3), Opetaia (1)

Seventh place: Haney (4) Ennis (4), Bivol (3), Nakatani (1), Collazo (1)

Eighth place: Ennis (5), Haney (4), Opetaia (2), Nakatani (1), Navarrete (1)

Ninth place: Ennis (3), Nakatani (2), Garcia (2), Bivol (1), Opetaia (1), Espinoza (1), Muratalla (1), Foster (1), Alvarez (1)

10th place: Opetaia (5), Nakatani (3), Garcia (2), Espinoza (1), Navarrete (1), Muratalla (1)